Charlie Kirk murder case: Utah prosecutors will argue that Tyler Robinson should be prosecuted

A five-day preliminary hearing in the murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk begins Monday in Utah, where prosecutors will argue whether Tyler Robinson should be tried. The hearing will mark the first time Kirk’s widow, Erica, and parents will appear in court with the defendant, the AP reports.Robinson, 23, is charged with aggravated murder for the Sept. 10 shooting, when Kirk died while addressing a crowd of thousands at Utah Valley University. He surrendered himself after the murder and has not filed any plea yet.Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Under Utah law, the death penalty requires aggravating circumstances. In this case, prosecutors will argue that the shooting endangered other people in the crowd. The proceedings will be livestreamed.Starting Monday, the focus will turn to whether there is enough evidence to send the case to trial, and whether the death penalty is appropriate.University of Utah law professor and former federal judge Paul Cassell described the evidence revealed so far as pointing to a strong prosecution case. He called it a straightforward matter of whether grounds existed for the case to proceed.The hearing will function like a summary trial. Prosecutors plan to present:

However prosecutors are not required to present all their evidence at this stage and may rely on hearsay.At the conclusion of the hearing, state District Judge Tony Graf will decide whether the case will proceed to trial. After Graf rejected the defense’s request to limit access, the media and public would be allowed to attend.This week, prosecutors need to show only reasonable grounds to believe Robinson committed murder, falling short of the “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard required at trial.Authorities have said that DNA matching Robinson’s profile was recovered from several pieces of evidence: the rifle’s trigger, the casing of the fired cartridge, two unfired cartridges and a towel used to wrap the weapon.According to authorities, Robinson’s parents confronted him after surveillance photos of the suspect and details about the rifle were made public. They reportedly persuaded him to meet with a family friend, a retired sheriff’s deputy, who helped arrange his surrender.Prosecutors say Robinson left a note for his roommate, saying he had a chance to “take out Charlie Kirk” and wanted to act on it. He also reportedly sent a text message that referred to Kirk’s “hatred”, stating that some hatred “cannot be negotiated.”Robinson’s attorneys unsuccessfully attempted to prevent prosecutors from using the roommate’s recorded statements at this stage. The defense argued that the roommate should testify in person, so that Robinson could challenge the witness’s credibility. Judge Graf ruled that such challenges would come later in the process.Kirk’s murder drew a strong reaction from Republican allies, including President Donald Trump, who announced Robinson’s arrest during a Fox News interview on September 12 and said he expected Robinson to receive the death penalty.Kirk, along with Turning Point USA, an organization he co-founded, played a key role in mobilizing conservative youth support for Trump’s re-election.Kirk’s widow, Erica Kirk, now leads Turning Point USA. He had advocated maintaining public access to the case after defense lawyers demanded a ban on cameras in the courtroom. She publicly forgave Robinson during her husband’s memorial service.