A Utah judge has ruled that Tyler Robinson, accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk, remains eligible for the death penalty if convicted of aggravated murder. In the same ruling on Friday, Judge Tony Graf Jr. found that Deputy Utah County Attorney Christopher Ballard violated a court order by publicly sharing his opinion on how strong the evidence against Robinson is. Graf rejected the defense’s request to remove the death penalty as a remedy, opting instead to expand the jury selection process to help ensure a fair trial.
Prosecutors had maintained that they had followed the gag order and court rules when they “set the record straight” after a defense filing, which they said was misleading, fueled viral coverage. That coverage suggested the ATF could not link the bullet that killed Kirk to the suspected murder weapon, a rifle belonging to Robinson’s grandfather. Court records show the ATF classified its toolmark analysis as inconclusive and said it could not determine whether a bullet fragment recovered from Kirk came from that rifle.
Prosecutors pointed out that the bullet’s caliber matched the rifle, and a spent casing found at the scene was also a match. They argued that neither the gag order nor state court rules barred them from correcting what they saw as a misleading defense filing. Graf agreed that those corrections were permissible. However, he found that Ballard went further in at least one interview by expressing confidence in the overall weight of the evidence against Robinson. Graf said that statement improperly signaled an opinion on guilt, and it formed the basis of the civil contempt finding.
Robinson to appear by video from jail
The dispute has escalated into a broader war of words. Prosecutors accuse the defense of releasing misleading information through court filings, while the defense accuses prosecutors of “hubris” for media interviews it says violated the gag order. Robinson will appear by video from jail.
He has not entered a plea and is not expected to do so until after his preliminary hearing, which is scheduled to span more than a week in early July.
The case has seen several recent developments. Lance Twiggs, 22, a former roommate of Robinson, received limited immunity for statements he gave prosecutors during an interview in April. Twiggs could be a key witness at the multi-day preliminary hearing next month. According to court filings, he met with prosecutors on April 20 and took part in a recorded interview about Robinson.
Portions of that interview could be shown to Judge Graf at the July hearing. In filings submitted Tuesday, prosecutors said they may also introduce messages exchanged between Twiggs and Robinson. The filings state that Twiggs is expected to receive limited use immunity for the recorded statement, which generally means the interview itself cannot be used against him in future criminal proceedings.
Witness immunity and what Twiggs told investigators
According to prosecutors, Twiggs repeated during his April 20 interview statements he had previously made to investigators after Kirk’s killing in September. He told authorities that Robinson admitted to carrying out the shooting, said he hid the firearm afterward, disposed of clothing connected to the incident, and told Twiggs not to speak with law enforcement.
Robinson has been charged in the case, and as reported by the Post, prosecutors have not yet tested these allegations in court.
Prosecutors made these disclosures while opposing a request from Robinson’s defense team to compel Twiggs to testify at the preliminary hearing. They argued his appearance was unnecessary because investigators already have his recorded statements and screenshots of text messages exchanged between him and Robinson.
Last week, Robinson’s defense team also suffered another setback. Judge Graf denied a motion to pause the case until the defense’s appeal of an earlier ruling is resolved. That earlier ruling denied the defense’s bid to bar cameras from the courtroom. This article may contain commentary that reflects the author’s opinion.
