After his arrest at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, Luigi Mangione chose Thomas Dickey, a local veteran defence attorney, to handle his case.
Mr Dickey, who says he is one of the state’s few death penalty qualified lawyers, spent Wednesday doing the media rounds on behalf of his client, who he suggested could plead not guilty to murder charges in New York.
The lawyer’s first task is to resist Mr Mangione’s extradition to New York to stand trial.
Who is Tom Dickey?
A lawyer with more than four decades of experience, his reputation among his clients appears to be good, with positive reviews online.
“Tom Dickey and his associates are absolutely the most hard-working humans I have met. They work tirelessly to make sure everything is in line and they update you immediately. Tom is a very passionate attorney and he cares about his clients,” wrote Sarah Politi.
“Attorney Thomas M Dickey is very knowledgeable about the law. He went above and beyond to help with my son’s case. He was very thorough and professional. I truly appreciate his help,” added Greg Corbin.
Before joining Blair County Public Defenders Office, Mr Dickey graduated from Altoona High School and got his law degree from Ohio Northern University.
What cases has he taken on?
Operating in a town with a population of just under 43,000, and cutting his teeth as a public defender, his criminal work encompasses the full spectrum from drunk driving to murder and rape cases.
According to his company’s website, Mr Dickey provides a defence “against all levels of criminal charges”.
The website adds: “A passionate advocate for his clients, Dickey believes in the Constitution and the blueprint it gives for being a citizen in this great country!”
His most famous case was representing 31-year-old Nicholas Horner, an Iraqi war veteran, charged with killing two people during a raid on a Subway sandwich store in 2009.
His defence that Horner was suffering from post-traumatic stress was unsuccessful. Horner was convicted and sentenced to life without parole. He died in 2019, aged 39.
Mr Dickey is a familiar face on local television stations, including commenting on the case of Jerry Sandusky, a college football coach who was sentenced to 30 to 60 years in jail after being convicted of 45 counts of child abuse.
What is Tom Dickey’s strategy?
Apart from fighting Mr Mangione’s extradition to New York, Mr Dickey’s first line of defence appears to be to seek to cast doubt on the weapon police allege was used to kill Brian Thompson.
“I have not been made aware of any evidence that links the gun that was found on his person to the crime, so these are things that we’re looking to see,” he told ABC’s GoodMorning America
He has also questioned the fingerprint and ballistic evidence when he appeared on CNN.
“Those two sciences, in and of themselves, have come under some criticism in the past, relative to their credibility, their truthfulness, their accuracy, however you want to do it,” he said.
Mr Dickey has also said he will want to examine how investigators collected the evidence that links his client to the murder.
Already Mr Dickey has sought to calm his client down after his outburst when he entered the Blair County courthouse.
“He’s irritated, agitated about what’s happening to him and what he’s being accused of,” Mr Dickey said.
“He never had any legal representation until he walked into that building yesterday.
“I talked to him … look at the difference between when he went in and when he came out … now he has a spokesperson and someone that’s going to fight for him.”
Mr Dickey’s tactics are hard to predict, David Rudovsy, a senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, told The Telegraph.
“It’s very hard to see what the legal defence will be. He has got some public support, but it’s hard to know how that will translate once a jury is picked,” he said.
“Does he want to go to trial to increase the publicity or does he seek a plea deal – though I don’t know whether there would be one.”
Can Tom Dickey represent Mr Mangione in New York?
Mr Dickey said he would “certainly consider” representing Mr Mangione, if he was asked to do so.
Although he does not have a licence to practice in New York, Mr Mangione said he could be admitted to the bar there.
He should benefit from a procedure known as “pro hoc vice”. In layman’s language it means that he will have to find a New York lawyer to act as local counsel, who would file a motion on Mr Dickey’s behalf to grant him permission to represent Mr Mangione.
However, the local lawyer would have to be in court with Mr Dickey and his name would have to appear on all the court papers.