Lawyers for Tyler Robinson, the man charged in the assassination of Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk, made a motion on Tuesday in a pretrial hearing to prevent video of the killing from being used as evidence.
They say it would be prejudicial as they attempt to get the county prosecutor’s office removed from the case because the adult child of a deputy prosecutor witnessed the horrible event.
Kirk was gunned down in September as he was delivering a speech at Utah Valley University, an event that stunned the nation and brought out gleeful cheers from leftist ghouls and deep mourning from those who respected Charlie’s work and/or loved him as a human being.
But Robinson’s lawyers claim the video in question is “irrelevant”:
Robinson's lawyers have accused the Utah County Attorney's Office of having a conflict of interest because the adult child of a deputy prosecutor was present during the assassination. Prosecutors have denied a conflict and said they do not need or plan to rely on the adult child as a witness.
Several videos of Kirk's murder circulated widely online minutes after the shooting. It was not immediately clear from court filings if the video prosecutors planned to introduce as evidence has been publicly seen before.
The defense described it as a color video taken "only a few feet away from Mr. Kirk." It includes audio "including unidentified voices, immediately before, during and after the shooting."
Tyler Robinson defense is complaining an adult child of a prosecutor witnessed Charlie Kirk’s m@rder thus requiring the DA’s recusal
— Phil Holloway ✈️ (@PhilHollowayEsq) January 28, 2026
So naturally video of what that person saw is not relevant, they say
🤡🤡🤡
The defense wants a secret trial
The judge needs to shut them down https://t.co/J5vNzMyeVV
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Legal analyst Andrea Burkhardt argues in her above tweet that millions of people have already seen video of Kirk getting shot:
Certainly, the video will be graphic and potentially upsetting. That said, millions of people already saw Charlie get shot almost in real time when cell phone video was everywhere, so unless the video adds something new that is particularly prejudicial to Tyler Robinson, I don't personally see how it would poison the jury pool beyond what the readily available cell phone footage has already done. The defense wants the court to not admit the exhibit at all, or if it does, to seal the exhibit so it's not shown during the hearing or available to the public to inspect.
As always, though, there are conflicting opinions:
“[The defense’s position]… is a solid argument," said Donna Rotunno, a Chicago-based criminal defense attorney and Fox News contributor...
"The video should not be played if it isn’t needed to prove any material issues in the hearing," she said. "I do not see how it is needed to determine if the prosecution should be disqualified."
Robinson faces a slew of charges, including aggravated murder, which potentially carries the death penalty. The defense has already made numerous motions to help their client — including demanding that cameras be banned from the court during pretrial hearings (the judge instead restricted their use but did not order them fully removed) and allowing Robinson to wear civilian clothes (they succeeded there). Expect them to file many more such motions.
RedState will keep you up to date as things progress. In the meantime, RIP Mr. Kirk; you are missed.
Editor’s Note: Charlie Kirk’s legacy lives on.
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