Charlie Kirk Assassin Suspect Tyler Robinson Denied Bid to Remove Death Penalty After Raising 'Misconduct' Claims Over Alleged Bullet Evidence
Tyler Robinson will still face the death penalty for allegedly killing Charlie Kirk.
June 26 2026, Published 11:52 a.m. ET
A judge has ruled that Tyler Robinson will still face the death penalty for the killing of Charlie Kirk, RadarOnline.com can report.
However, the court has slammed one of the Utah County prosecutors with contempt for breaking a gag order and embarking on what Robinson's lawyers deemed a "media blitz" that could have tainted the jury pool.
Tyler Robinson's Major Blow In Court
A judge did rule prosecutors were out of line going on a media tour.
At a hearing Friday morning, Judge Tony Graf announced he would hold Deputy Utah County Attorney Christopher Ballard in contempt for openly discussing claims the bullet used to kill the conservative commentator did not match Robinson's rifle.
As Radar previously reported, Robinson's attorneys have stated authorities were "unable to (connect) the bullet recovered at autopsy to the rifle allegedly tied to Mr. Robinson."
But the state's attorneys fired, arguing the defense team wasn't being entirely forthcoming about the findings, and clarified the report actually states that the bullet jacket fragment "could not be identified or excluded" as having been fired from that rifle.
In response, Ballard went on what Robinson's lawyers called a willful "media tour" with his side of the story, discussing the details and violating the gag order.
Prosecutors Continue to Clash with Tyler Robinson's Defense Team
The prosecutor was held in contempt for discussed findings about the bullet and rifle used to kill Kirk.
Ballard insisted he only spoke to the media to correct the defense's "mischaracterization of bullet evidence," which he argued fueled questions and speculation that their case was flawed.
"My concern is that it would feed the idea the state did not have sufficient evidence in the case," Ballard said. "This was a significant issue, and we needed to figure out how to respond to that."
Ballard stated, "In a murder case where a victim was killed by a single bullet, it is difficult to imagine publicity that would be more unduly prejudicial than false reports that the bullet recovered from the victim was proven to have not been fired from the defendant’s rifle."
Prosecutor Was 'Out of Line'
Robinson's attorneys have sparred with state prosecutors throughout the pre-trial proceedings.
While Judge Graf agreed that prosecutors were allowed to correct the public record regarding the ATF findings, he did rule that Ballard crossed the line when he publicly stated there was "ample evidence" proving Robinson's guilt.
Graf found that while Ballard "did not engage with the media out of a malicious desire to flout this court’s authority or to intentionally taint the jury pool," statements sharing his opinion on Robinson's guilt and the strength of the state’s case went beyond what the instructions allowed.
"Those additional public statements possessed a substantial likelihood of materially prejudicing the proceedings," Graf said.
What's Next for the Trial?
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Robinson has yet to enter a plea to the killing of Kirk.
Defense attorneys had also requested Graff strike the death penalty as a sanction, but the judge refused. He did, however, rule he would consider expanding jury selection procedures, including adding enhanced juror questionnaires and summonses, due to Ballard's public comments.
Graff also ordered that Robinson be reimbursed for attorney's fees associated with the evidentiary hearing on the sanctions motion stemming from the gag order violations.
Robinson is next due in court on July 6, for a five-day preliminary hearing during which prosecutors will present evidence and ask Graf to find probable cause to bring the case to trial. Robinson has still not entered a plea to the killing of Kirk.
