Share and Follow
SALT LAKE CITY — The individual accused of the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk at a Utah college will make another court appearance on Friday. A state judge is currently considering whether specific documents and hearings should remain accessible to the public.
This decision will pave the way for an April session where Tyler Robinson’s legal team will argue for the exclusion of television cameras, microphones, and photographers from the courtroom.
Judge Tony Graf is deliberating between the public’s right to be informed about this case and the defense’s concerns that media coverage could compromise Robinson’s chance of a fair trial. Prosecutors, Kirk’s widow, and representatives of media organizations have all advocated for keeping the proceedings open to the public.
Robinson, who is 22 years old, faces charges of aggravated murder following the September 10 shooting of the conservative figure on the Utah Valley University grounds in Orem. Prosecutors are pursuing the death penalty, though Robinson has not entered a plea yet.
On Friday, legal representatives are set to discuss whether the defense’s written motion to prohibit cameras—which the court has deemed private—should be disclosed to the public.
The judge will also determine if an April 17 hearing on the matter will be open or partially closed. Robinson’s attorneys argue in court documents that portions of the hearing should be private to avoid republicizing misleading information that they say has come from media and government officials.
Media access has been a focal point of several recent hearings, with the judge placing temporary restrictions on local TV stations for showing Robinson’s shackles in violation of a court order and filming close-up shots that might allow viewers to interpret what he was discussing with his attorneys.
The judge also has prevented full video recordings of Kirk’s shooting from being shown in court after defense attorneys argued the graphic footage would interfere with a fair trial. An estimated 3,000 people attended the outdoor rally to hear Kirk, a co-founder of Turning Point USA who helped mobilize young people to vote for President Donald Trump.
Prosecutors have said DNA evidence connects Robinson to the killing.
At the latest hearing, in February, the judge declined to disqualify the local county attorney’s office from prosecuting the case after the defense argued there was a conflict of interest because a prosecutor’s daughter was present when Kirk was shot.
Copyright © 2026 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.