Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
- Fourth District Judge Tony Graf to rule on contempt, hearsay evidence in Tyler Robinson case.
- Robinson's defense seeks to remove death penalty option.
PROVO — The judge in the Tyler Robinson capital murder case is expected to announce his rulings on two issues Monday.
The decisions come as Robinson and his defense team are renewing their efforts to keep cameras and microphones out of the courtroom during the upcoming preliminary hearing.
Fourth District Judge Tony Graf will decide Monday whether the Utah County Attorney's Office should be held in contempt of court for speaking to the media about evidence in the case. He will also announce a decision on whether hearsay evidence will be allowed at trial.
Robinson, 23, is accused of shooting and killing political activist Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10, 2025. He currently faces a potential death sentence if convicted.
In March, Robinson's defense team filed a motion to postpone his preliminary hearing. In that motion, they noted that an initial report from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives "indicates that the ATF was unable to identify the bullet recovered at autopsy to the rifle allegedly tied to Mr. Robinson."
The state contends that Robinson should have said the ATF report could not identify or exclude that the bullet fragments recovered at autopsy matched the rifle found near the shooting. But because that part was left out, prosecutors argue the statement created a firestorm in the media and they needed to correct the misleading information being spread. To do that, prosecutor Chris Ballad, the Utah County Attorney Office's spokesman, issued a press release and went on several national news programs to talk about the ATF report.
Robinson's defense team believes Ballard's "media tour" violated Graf's order not to prejudice the potential jury pool by speaking to the media and now want the office held in contempt. Furthermore, Robinson has requested that Graf pull the option of seeking a death penalty from the table as a penalty for that contempt.
Graf is also expected to announce Monday whether hearsay evidence will be allowed at the preliminary hearing.
Hearsay evidence is any statement that a person, such as a police officer, collects from another person, such as a witness, and presents that statement at the hearing. The state plans to call several police officers to the witness stand during the preliminary hearing and present a video recorded interview conducted with Robinson's roommate at the time of Kirk's death, Lance Twiggs.
Robinson, however, says Twiggs is a key part of the state's case and having a recorded interview prohibits them from cross examining the witness. They have requested that Graf subpoena Twiggs to be at the hearing in person.
Also, on Friday, Robinson filed a motion requesting that the state provide: a list of the law enforcement history of each of the officers they intend to call to the witness stand during the preliminary hearing including each officer's title; a copy of each officer's training history; and "if the individual purports to be an expert based on training and experience to testify to any particular fact or set of facts, a list of any other training or experience not otherwise disclosed."
At a preliminary hearing, a judge decides if there is enough probable cause for a defendant to proceed to trial on the charges levied against that person. Prosecutors say the bar they must meet to show probable cause at the preliminary hearing stage is so low that a videotaped interview is acceptable. Robinson's preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 6-10.
Also on Sunday, Robinson and his defense team filed yet another motion seeking to keep cameras and microphones out of the courtroom during the prelim.
"Mr. Robinson objects to electronic media coverage of the preliminary hearing in its entirety because 'there is a reasonable likelihood that electronic media coverage will prejudice the right of the parties to a fair proceeding,'" the defense team stated in their motion. "Continuing electronic media coverage of the proceedings in this case, particularly the preliminary hearing, threatens Mr. Robinson's rights to a fair trial by an impartial jury by perpetuating bias in the public against Mr. Robinson.
"Specific to the preliminary hearing, the electronic media coverage will memorialize and widely disseminate the anticipated largely hearsay-based evidentiary presentation from the state. Such evidence is, by its very nature, insufficiently reliable for admission at trial," the motion continues. "It bears repeating, the state of Utah is seeking the death penalty against Mr. Robinson. The taking of evidence during the preliminary examination and the determinations made by the court thereafter based upon that evidence is a critical stage of these capital proceedings. The media presence in the courtroom both distracts and places added pressure on hearing participants to present for the media, as opposed to focusing on the facts, evidence, and mechanics of the hearing. Mr. Robinson's case is not and should not be made into a reality TV show."
Robinson has appealed Graf's decision to allow cameras in the courtroom for the preliminary hearing to the Utah Supreme Court and has further asked the state's high court to order a pause on all legal proceedings in the Robinson case until the Supreme Court decides whether it will hear his appeal. Last week, Robinson filed another motion to the Utah Supreme Court requesting that the judges expedite their review of the motion to stay the 4th District Court proceedings in light of the upcoming preliminary hearing.
