Professor Gregory Germain spoke with The Hill on the possibility of jury nullification for the Luigi Mangione trial, the man accused of fatally shooting UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
Jury nullification occurs when a jury returns a not guilty verdict even though jurors believe beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant has broken the law. This may happen when jurors disagree with the law or the punishment.
“I think it’s very unlikely that a case like this is going to confront something like jury nullification,” said Germain. “Most of us hate insurance companies and have had difficult experiences dealing with insurance companies, but that doesn’t mean we think people should be going around murdering insurance executives in the street.”
Germain noted that it’s unlikely potential nullifiers will be able to hide that level of bias during the jury selection process. He adds that while Mangione does have a large fanbase, most “people who want to live in a civilized society are not going to find him to be an appealing defendant.”