(Provo) The Utah man accused of killing far-right activist Charlie Kirk appeared in court Friday, his lawyers seeking to have prosecutors recuse themselves on the grounds that an adult child of an assistant county attorney attended the rally at which Kirk was shot.
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Defense attorneys say the relationship represents a conflict of interest after prosecutors declared their intention to seek the death penalty against Tyler Robinson for aggravated murder.
Robinson, 22, has pleaded not guilty in Kirk’s murder, which occurred Sept. 10 on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem, a few miles north of the Provo courthouse.
The 18-year-old who attended the event — and whose name was redacted from court documents — then sent a text message to his father at the Utah County District Attorney’s Office, describing the chaotic events surrounding the shooting, according to documents filed by prosecutors and defense attorneys.
Robinson’s lawyers say this personal relationship constitutes a conflict of interest that “raises serious concerns about the Crown’s past and future decisions in this matter,” according to court documents. They also argue that the “rush” to seek the death penalty against Robinson is evidence of a “strong emotional reaction” on the part of the Prosecution and justifies the disqualification of the entire team.
Defense attorney Richard Novak on Friday urged Judge Tony Graf to use the state attorney general’s office instead of Utah County prosecutors to resolve the conflict of interest. Mr. Novak said it was problematic for county prosecutors to argue on behalf of the state while defending their fitness to continue serving in the case.
Utah County Prosecutor Richard Gray responded that Mr. Novak’s last-minute request was intended to delay the trial against Robinson.
“This is an ambush and another delaying tactic to delay the proceedings,” Mr. Gray said.
PHOTO ROSS D. FRANKLIN, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Charlie Kirk
Several thousand people attended the outdoor rally at which Kirk, co-founder of Turning Point USA who helped mobilize young people to vote for President Donald Trump, was shot while answering questions from the audience. The adult child of the assistant county attorney did not see the source of the gunshots, according to an affidavit submitted by prosecutors.
“As the second person in line was talking with Charlie, I was looking around when I heard a loud noise, like a gunshot. Someone yelled, ‘He’s been shot,'” that person said in the affidavit. She then sent a text message to a family chat group to say “CHARLIE HAS BEEN SHOT.”
After the event, the young person did not miss any classes or other activities, and did not report any lasting trauma “other than being scared in the moment,” according to the affidavit.
Prosecutors asked Judge Graf to deny the recusal request.
“Under these circumstances, there is virtually no risk, much less a significant risk, that this would arouse such emotions in a father-prosecutor that he would be unable to fairly prosecute the case,” County Prosecutor Gray said in a filing.
Mr. Gray also argued that the young person was “neither a material witness nor a victim in this case” and that “almost everything” that this person knew about the murder was mere hearsay.
Prosecutors said text messages and DNA evidence linked Robinson to the murder. Robinson allegedly sent a text message to his partner to tell her that he had targeted Kirk because he “had enough of her hatred.”
During recent hearings, Robinson’s legal team insisted on limiting media access to the high-profile case.
