() Prosecutors are set to present evidence to a judge on Monday against Tyler Robinson, the suspect in the assassination of Charlie Kirk, in a preliminary hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to go to trial.

Robinson, 22, is accused of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk during his appearance at Utah Valley University earlier this month. He is facing seven charges, including aggravated murder and obstruction of justice.

Utah state attorneys said they will be pursuing the death penalty in this case. Before Robinson’s arrest, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said he wanted Kirk’s killer to face capital punishment and referred to the shooting as a “political assassination.” Unlike in many states, Utah does not require a grand jury indictment.

Robinson won’t be in court in person for the hearing; instead, he will appear virtually from jail, accompanied by his newly appointed defense attorney, Kathryn Nester, who has decades of experience in capital cases.
 
Prosecutors are expected to lay out DNA evidence, alleged confessions, and other materials, all to convince the judge there’s enough to send the case to trial. Court documents obtained by showed a text exchange between Robinson and his roommate, which shows that he allegedly confessed to killing Kirk.

According to those documents, the roommate said he received a text message from Robinson on Sept. 10, saying, “Drop what you are doing, look under my keyboard.”

Why isn’t Tyler Robinson’s case being tried in federal court?

Legal experts told that, even though the shooting is drawing national attention and the FBI is helping investigate, Robinson’s case doesn’t meet the criteria to be tried federally.

Homicides are generally prosecuted at the state level. They only become federal crimes in limited instances, such as the killing of a federal official, a crime on federal property, or a federal hate crime, which doesn’t apply to Robinson.

Utah prosecutors are leading the case, with the FBI and ATF playing a supporting role. Both state and federal courts can seek the death penalty, but a major difference is cameras.

Because Kirk’s death is a state case, proceedings can be televised, meaning much of this trial could play out publicly.