Death penalty to be sought for Charlie Kirk assassination

Audio By Carbonatix

(The Center Square) – Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray announced Tuesday he will seek the death penalty for suspect Tyler James Robinson for the assassination of conservative leader Charlie Kirk.

Gray told reporters he was filing a total of seven counts against Robinson, 22, including aggravated murder, discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury and counts of obstruction of justice and witness tampering.

"The murder of Charlie Kirk is an American tragedy," Gray said.

Kirk, a devoted ally of Trump, was shot and killed during an event Wednesday that 3,000 people attended at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. On Friday, authorities announced Robinson was in custody. 

Robinson, who has been incarcerated since the arrest without bail in a Utah County jail, will appear virtually for his first appearance Tuesday afternoon before a judge, Gray said. He added Robinson will get a preliminary hearing later in which a judge will evaluate whether there's probable cause to proceed to trial.

Gray said the charges, which were filed in the Fourth Judicial District Court of Utah County, include a capital crime: one count of aggravated murder, "for intentionally and knowingly causing the death of Charlie Kirk under circumstances that created a great risk to others."

The second count is a first-degree felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury. 

Gray noted both counts included aggravating factors because Robinson is believed to have targeted Kirk based on the conservative leader's political beliefs and because the homicide occurred in the presence of children. Both of those factors are described as "victim targeting enhancements" in the court document listing the charges, signed by Gray and dated Sept. 16, 2025.

Charges also include two second-degree felonies for obstruction of justice, Gray said, referring to the court document throughout the press conference.

One of those counts is for concealing the rifle used in the assassination, Gray said, adding that the other count is for disposing of the clothing he wore during the homicide.

The charges also include two third-degree felonies for tampering with a witness, Gray said. He said one count accuses Robinson of trying to get his roommate to delete incriminating text messages and that the other count accuses Robinson of trying to persuade his roommate to stay silent if questioned by police.

The seventh count is a misdemeanor for committing a violent act in the presence of a child, Gray said.

The court document includes a probable cause statement by Brian Davis of the Utah State Bureau of Investigations and notes police found the suspected murder weapon, a bolt-action .30-06 rifle near the site where Charlie Kirk spoke. Davis' statement goes on to cite the actions described in the seven counts.

During Tuesday's news conference, Gray noted the cartridges in the rifle had etched messages such as "Hey Fascist! Catch!" 

"The rifle, ammunition rounds, and towel were sent for forensic processing," Gray said, reading from the court document. "DNA consistent with Robinson’s was found on the trigger, other parts of the rifle, the fired cartridge casing, two of the three unfired cartridges, and the towel."

The document goes into what authorities call an exchange of cellphone texts between Robinson and his roommate. According to the document, Robinson accused Kirk of hatred and said he planned the assassination for "a bit over a week." Gray read the text exchange, listed in the court document, during the news conference.

The document also describes a police search, conducted with a warrant, of Robinson's residence. "During that search, police discovered a shell casing with etchings like the etchings found on the shells in the rifle near UVU. Police also found several targets with bullet holes in Robinson’s home," the document said.

Gray said he knows there's great national and international interest in the case, but said press conferences would only be occasional in the hope of ensuring Robinson a fair trial.

Editor's note: This story has been updated since its initial publication.