48 percent believe murder is justified
Nearly half of college students in America view the accused murderer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson favorably, while more than 8 in 10 hold a negative opinion of Thompson, according to a new Generation Lab poll.
When asked to choose between the two, 45 percent of students said they side with accused killer Luigi Mangione, 17 percent with Thompson, and 37 percent with neither, the poll found. Forty-eight percent said they believe the murder was totally or somewhat justified, and 81 percent reported having an extremely or somewhat negative view of the victim.
Mangione, 26, is accused of murdering the UnitedHealthcare CEO outside a Midtown Manhattan hotel on December 4. He has pleaded not guilty to murder and other state charges. He is also facing federal charges, including stalking and using a firearm to commit murder, with the death penalty on the table.
The Generation Lab findings highlight a sharp divide in attitudes toward the gunning-down of Thompson, with younger individuals more likely to view it favorably and sympathize with Mangione. A similar trend appeared in an Emerson poll last month, in which 41 percent of voters under 30 described the killing as “acceptable,” far more than any other age group. Social media users, meanwhile, have lionized the accused murderer, with Axios reporting that “the Internet” is cheering him as a “folk hero.”
Mangione is scheduled to make his next court appearance on February 17.