PROVO, Utah — An emotional scene unfolded in court on the second day of the preliminary hearing for Tyler Robinson, accused of killing Charlie Kirk. During proceedings on Tuesday, the victim’s widow, Erika Kirk, offered a tissue to a woman sitting in front of her, who was overcome with tears.
Throughout the hearing, the Kirk family has been granted the flexibility to leave the courtroom to avoid distressing parts of the testimony.
On Tuesday, a poignant moment occurred when the defense attorney, Richard Novak, was cross-examining David Hull, the lead investigator. As the discussion shifted to the gunshot that took Charlie Kirk’s life, the family chose to exit the room.
Denae Branch and her companions secured their spots at the front of the line to attend Tyler Robinson’s preliminary hearing held at Utah’s Fourth District Court in Provo on Tuesday, July 7, 2026. All four witnesses claimed to have been present during Charlie Kirk’s assassination at Utah Valley University in Orem the previous year. (Michael Ruiz/News Media)
“That’s just who Erika is. She’s good,” a comment that encapsulates the heartfelt ambiance in the courtroom.
They returned about 10 minutes later when the topic had changed, with Erika Kirk leaning on her mother-in-law, Kathy Kirk.
Erika Kirk departs court in Provo, Utah, Monday, July 6, 2026. The widow of Charlie Kirk was attending the first day of preliminary hearings against, Tyler Robinson who is on trial for Kirk’s murder. (Alec Thornock for News Media)
As they took their seats, Erika Kirk leaned forward and handed a tissues to a woman, Denae Branch, who was seated in the row ahead of her.
“I went thinking I was going to support Erika, and at one point I turn around, and I see her just holding on to her sweet mother-in-law, and I like, kind of lose it and start crying,” Branch said in a teary video on Instagram explaining the encounter. “Next thing I know, I feel a tap on my shoulder, and I turn back, and Erika is handing me one of her tissues.”
Charlie Kirk was assassinated Sept. 10 during an outdoor event at Utah Valley University. (Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune/Getty Images)
Branch and three of her friends were already in line to get into the courthouse around 2:30 a.m. Tuesday.
They told News Media they had arrived at midnight after they came too late Monday morning to get one of the 14 seats available to the public in the Fourth District Courthouse in Provo.
Branch and her friends said they were attending the Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10, 2025, when Kirk was shot and killed.
Tyler Robinson, left, accused in the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk, sits beside defense attorney Kathryn Nester during a hearing in Fourth District Court in Provo on Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (Bethany Baker/The Salt Lake Tribune via Pool)
They were strangers at the time, but met through a support group for survivors and witnesses in the months that followed the assassination.
Prior to the hearing, two women in their group were asked to remove or cover up their Turning Point USA T-shirts to comply with the court’s decorum order, which bans messages of support for other side in the case.
“She didn’t know that I was there for her,” Branch said in her video. “We weren’t allowed to wear anything to tell her that we were there for her…But that’s just who Erika is. She’s good.”
Erika Kirk departs court in Provo, Utah, Monday, July 6, 2026. The widow of Charlie Kirk was attending the first day of preliminary hearings against, Tyler Robinson who is on trial for Kirk’s murder. (Alec Thornock for News Media)
She declined to be interviewed on camera.
“I hope she feels my prayers for her,” she said in her Instagram post.