The man accused of assassinating conservative leader Charlie Kirk will still face the possibility of the death penalty after a Utah judge on Friday rejected a defense effort to remove capital punishment from the case.
Fourth District Judge Tony Graf Jr. ruled that Tyler Robinson, who is charged with aggravated murder in the Sept. 10, 2025, killing of the Turning Point USA founder, remains eligible for the death penalty if convicted — despite finding that one of the prosecutors violated a court-ordered gag rule.
The defense had argued prosecutors should lose the ability to seek the death penalty after Deputy Utah County Attorney Christopher Ballard made public comments about the strength of the state’s evidence while the case was under a pretrial publicity order.
Graf agreed Ballard crossed the line when he publicly declared there was “ample evidence” proving Robinson’s guilt before trial. The judge held Ballard in civil contempt, saying prosecutors cannot publicly express opinions about a defendant’s guilt while a case is pending.
But the judge stopped well short of the punishment Robinson’s attorneys wanted.
“The court finds that striking the death penalty is grossly disproportionate to the misconduct and legally unavailable,” Graf said from the bench, instead ordering expanded jury screening to help ensure Robinson receives a fair trial. Prosecutors were also ordered to pay legal fees associated with the contempt motion.
The courtroom battle centered on conflicting public claims about key ballistic evidence.
Robinson’s attorneys had pointed to an ATF report showing investigators could not conclusively identify the bullet fragment recovered from Kirk’s body as having come from Robinson’s grandfather’s rifle. Prosecutors responded that the defense’s characterization omitted critical facts: while the damaged fragment could not be definitively matched, experts also could not eliminate the rifle as the source, the caliber was consistent, and a spent shell casing recovered at the scene was matched to the suspected weapon.
Judge Graf ruled prosecutors were permitted to publicly correct what they viewed as a misleading portrayal of the forensic evidence. Their violation occurred only when Ballard went further by publicly discussing Robinson’s alleged guilt and the overall strength of the case.
The high-profile murder case has drawn national attention since Kirk was fatally shot while addressing a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University in September 2025. Prosecutors allege Robinson acted alone and have charged him with aggravated murder, firearm offenses, obstruction of justice and witness tampering. Robinson has not yet entered a plea.
The judge has repeatedly acknowledged the extraordinary publicity surrounding the case and has said an expanded jury pool, detailed juror questionnaires and extensive voir dire will be used to protect Robinson’s right to a fair trial rather than removing the death penalty.
Robinson’s preliminary hearing is scheduled to begin in early July, where prosecutors are expected to publicly present much of their evidence for the first time as the closely watched case moves one step closer to trial.
