Judge in Charlie Kirk case hears request to dismiss prosecution team
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Tyler Robinson, the alleged killer of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, is charged with seven criminal counts.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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UTAH – A Utah judge on Jan 16 heard arguments from a lawyer for the alleged killer of conservative activist Charlie Kirk
District court judge Tony Graf considered the motion to disqualify the Utah County Attorney’s office from prosecuting the case on the grounds that the 18-year-old daughter of one of its senior lawyers witnessed Mr Kirk’s killing on Sept 10, 2025
Tyler Robinson, Mr Kirk’s alleged killer, appeared relaxed and at times smiled during the hearing where Mr Graf barred a court videographer from filming close-ups of him talking to his attorney over concerns about lip-reading.
Mr Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, is credited with mobilising young conservative voters who helped US President Donald Trump win the 2024 election.
Defence lawyers argued that a decision by the Utah County Attorney’s office to seek the death penalty for Robinson less than a week after Mr Kirk’s death showed a “strong emotional reaction” from the senior lawyer and prosecution team he supervises.
Robinson’s attorney Richard Novak said the office should be barred from the case as no effort was made to shield prosecutors from the senior lawyer’s conflict of interest.
“There was no effort to screen off that prosecutor, and that has now created a problem for the whole office,” Mr Novak told the court, citing text messages the lawyer’s daughter sent him saying Mr Kirk had been shot that were subsequently shared with members of the prosecution team.
Robinson, 22, is accused of firing a single round from a rooftop that hit Mr Kirk as he debated students at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah during a tour of US colleges. Mr Kirk’s death underscored rising political violence in the United States during a hyper-polarised era.
Utah County attorney Jeffrey Gray testified that the senior lawyer’s daughter, a student at Utah Valley University, was just one of thousands of people present when Mr Kirk was shot.
“What she could testify to is uncontested,” said Mr Gray, adding that he saw no conflict of interest in her father’s role in the prosecution.
In court documents, Mr Gray said his decision to seek the death penalty was motivated by the nature of the murder, which put other people’s lives in danger.
Much of the hearing on Jan 16 dealt with a defence request that the Utah Attorney General’s office respond to its disqualification motion, rather than the Utah County Attorney’s office.
The next hearing in the case is on Feb 3.
Robinson is charged with seven criminal counts, including aggravated murder, obstruction of justice for disposing of evidence and witness tampering for asking his roommate to delete incriminating texts. REUTERS
