The man accused of assassinating conservative activist Charlie Kirk will continue to face the possibility of the death penalty after a Utah judge rejected a defense bid to remove capital punishment from the closely watched murder case.
Fourth District Judge Tony Graf Jr. ruled Friday that Tyler Robinson remains eligible for the death penalty if convicted of aggravated murder in the Sept. 10, 2025, killing of the Turning Point USA founder during an event at Utah Valley University.
The ruling came despite the judge finding that one of the prosecutors violated a court-ordered gag order by publicly expressing confidence in the strength of the evidence against Robinson before trial.
Rather than stripping prosecutors of the ability to seek the death penalty, however, Graf called that request “grossly disproportionate” and instead ordered additional safeguards during jury selection to help ensure Robinson receives a fair trial.
“The court finds that striking the death penalty is grossly disproportionate to the misconduct and legally unavailable,” Graf said from the bench.
The courtroom dispute centered on public statements about forensic evidence.
Robinson’s attorneys argued prosecutors should be punished after Deputy Utah County Attorney Christopher Ballard responded to media reports surrounding an ATF ballistic analysis. The defense had pointed to an ATF report stating investigators could not conclusively match the bullet fragment recovered from Kirk’s body to Robinson’s grandfather’s rifle.
Prosecutors fired back, saying that the narrative omitted critical facts. While the damaged bullet fragment could neither be definitively identified nor excluded as coming from the rifle, investigators determined the caliber was consistent with the suspected weapon. Prosecutors have also said a spent shell casing recovered at the scene was matched to the same rifle.
Judge Graf ruled that prosecutors were permitted to publicly correct what they believed was a misleading characterization of the forensic evidence. However, he concluded Ballard crossed the line when he publicly stated there was “ample evidence” proving Robinson’s guilt before a jury has heard the case.
That comment resulted in a civil contempt finding against the prosecutor, but the judge declined to impose the far more severe sanction sought by the defense.
The murder of Kirk setn shockwaves across the country.
Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA and one of the nation’s best-known conservative organizers, was fatally shot while addressing supporters during a campus event. Prosecutors allege Robinson carried out the assassination and have charged him with aggravated murder, along with multiple firearm-related offenses, obstruction of justice and witness tampering.
Utah County prosecutors have said from the outset that they intend to pursue the death penalty if Robinson is convicted.
Robinson has not yet entered a plea. His preliminary hearing is scheduled to begin in early July, where prosecutors are expected to present evidence outlining the case against him for the first time in open court.
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