Lawyer for suspect in Kirk killing wants more time to review evidence

A 22-year-old man is accused of killing right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, and an attorney for him has requested that the prosecution’s case be reviewed before making a decision to request a preliminary hearing.

According to my understanding, there will be a lot of digital [evidence] coming, Tyler Robinson’s lawyer Kathryn Nester told the court on Monday.

If Robinson’s case is strong enough, a preliminary hearing would decide whether the case should proceed. In the US state of Utah, Robinson has been charged with aggravated murder and intends to seek the death penalty.

The Utah Valley University campus in Orem, a few miles away from the hearing, was located in Provo, where many students are still recovering from the day-and-a-half search for the suspect and the September 10 shooting.

When Robinson showed up with his parents at the sheriff’s office in southwest Utah, which is located more than three hours away from the shooting site, to turn himself in, authorities arrested him. Since then, Robinson’s involvement in the murder has been documented by the prosecution through corroborating text messages and DNA evidence.

Before the first hearing, Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray told reporters that Robinson had the right to kill one of the country’s leading conservative voices in a note he left for his romantic partner before the shooting. Additionally, Robinson claimed that he had enough of his hatred when he sent his partner a text about Kirk.

Many Republicans have been stoked by the assassination of Kirk, a close ally of President Donald Trump’s efforts to sway young voters toward conservatism, who has pledged to carry on Kirk’s goal of moving American politics further right.

Trump has referred to Kirk as a “martyr” of freedom and threatened to repress the “radical left” in his campaign statements.

Employers in the US have received punishment or firing for making public statements about Kirk after his death, including journalists, teachers, public and private employees, and celebrities like Jimmy Kimmel, whose late-night show was suspended and then reinstated by the ABC network.

Through his podcast, social media, and campus events, Kirk’s political group, Arizona-based Turning Point USA, introduced young evangelical Christians to politics. At the upcoming campus events that Kirk planned to attend, including Utah Governor Spencer Cox and Utah State University’s Senator Mike Lee on Tuesday, a number of well-known Republicans will be filling in.

Judge Tony Graf made a brief admission at Monday’s hearing that the case is likely to garner a lot of attention, and he made sure to point out that “Mr. Robinson’s constitutional rights will be protected at every stage,” as well as those of the victims.

He instructed both sides to “accomplish our roles with integrity, civility, and diligence.” Each of you is asked to give their absolute best to this situation. Utah’s citizens and Mr. Robinson both deserve something more than a fair and impartial administration of justice.