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Tyler Robinson's defense team fights to seal evidence and punish prosecutors in Charlie Kirk's assassination
By Michael Ruiz, Stepheny Price
Published May 19, 2026
PROVO, Utah — Charlie Kirk's accused assassin Tyler Robinson is due back in court later today as his defense hopes to convince a judge to block the public from portions of his upcoming preliminary hearing.
The judge is expected to hear oral arguments on two issues — a defense motion to close part of Robinson's upcoming preliminary hearing and seal evidence, as well as another motion to punish prosecutors for speaking about the case outside of court.
Robinson's defense team, attorneys Kathy Nester, Michael Burt, Richard Novak and Staci Visser, is seeking to block the public from hearing testimony or seeing exhibits that may later be found inadmissible at trial.
It was not clear in court filings which witness testimony or evidence exhibits the defense wants kept hidden, and prosecutors have argued that the failure to identify specifics should lead to the motion's denial.
WHAT TYLER ROBINSON'S DEFENSE WANTS HIDDEN AND WHY PROSECUTORS AND MEDIA SAY NO IN COURT
Tyler Robinson appears in Fourth District Court in Provo, Utah, on Dec. 11, 2025, charged with the murder of Charlie Kirk. (Rick Egan/The Salt Lake Tribune)
According to court filings, some of the exhibits prosecutors plan to present include records from the communications app Discord, text messages, written or recorded statements, videos of the shooting and a note.
Robinson, 22, is accused of fatally shooting Kirk, 31, at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10, 2025. Kirk was answering a question from the audience at a Turning Point USA event in front of roughly 3,000 people when a sniper's bullet struck him in the neck.
Judge Tony Graf Jr. previously rejected another defense motion to ban news cameras from the courtroom.
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Conservative activist Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point Action, speaks during a campus meeting at the University of Arizona in Tucson on Oct. 17, 2024. (Olivier Touron/AFP)
Legal analyst Randolph Rice told Fox News Digital previously that the motion to have part of Robinson's preliminary hearing held in private is a "strategic move" aimed at minimizing damage to his reputation in front of the potential jury pool.
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"A preliminary hearing is not a trial, so prosecutors are often permitted to introduce certain evidence, hearsay statements, police summaries, or investigative details that may never be admissible before the actual trial jury," he said. "The defense wants to limit public dissemination of that information to avoid tainting the future jury pool."
A ladder and rooftop ledge lead to the roof of the Loose Center at Utah Valley University, with no security gate in place. (Stepheny Price/Fox News Digital)
The second motion is asking Graf to sanction prosecutors for doing media interviews after the defense questioned ballistics testing in court documents.
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Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray's office countered that when speaking about the issue, his prosecutors "set the record straight" and did not violate any court rules.
Robinson's defense lawyers, in a court filing, asserted that "the ATF was unable to identify the bullet recovered at autopsy to the rifle allegedly tied to Mr. Robinson."
Deputy County Attorney Christopher Ballard, in an opposition filing, called the claim misleading and "misstated" and noted it had gone viral and fueled conspiracy theories before anyone from his office spoke out against it.
An aerial view of Utah Valley University campus shows the suspected movements of Tyler Robinson, the alleged assassin of Charlie Kirk, based on court documents, video from the scene and law enforcement conversations. (Fox News Digital)
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"The ATF was unable to identify or exclude the bullet as having been fired from the rifle," he wrote, emphasizing the missing information in italics.
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Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, was shot and killed during his "American Comeback Tour" appearance at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, on Sept. 10, 2025. (Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune/Getty Images)
"Defendant reinforced this misleading inference by following it up with, 'the defense may very well decide to offer the testimony of the ATF firearm analyst as exculpatory evidence,'" he added.
In response, members of the prosecution team attempted to provide more context in public interviews, explaining the ATF's conclusions while noting the defendant was innocent until proven guilty, Ballard wrote.
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UVU students pause to reflect as they look over the spot where Charlie Kirk was assassinated in Orem, Utah, on Sept. 17, 2025. The college campus reopened and classes resumed after being closed for a week. (Matthew Finn/Fox News)
Graf eventually unsealed the ATF report in order to give the public direct access to the source material.
If convicted, Robinson could potentially face the death penalty.
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Robinson surrendered to authorities in southern Utah less than two days after the slaying.
Prosecutors have alleged he confessed to friends and family. He is being held without bail and has not yet entered a plea.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/tyler-robinsons-defense-team-fights-seal-evidence-punish-prosecutors-charlie-kirks-assassination