No plea deal, just a guilty plea

There were reports in US media leading up to today's hearing that Mangione would be taking a plea deal. That is not what happened - Mangione simply changed his plea of "not guilty" to "guilty". Plea deals, which don't exist in the UK, often include an exchange where the defendant gets a lighter sentence, or charges are dropped in exchange for his guilty plea. There is none of that with this case, and Mangione could still face life in prison.