The defense team for the man accused of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk estimate his trial will last seven months — and say they won’t be ready until 2029.

Utah County prosecutors want to try Tyler Robinson much sooner, and expect the trial to take nearly four months.

Both sides submitted their estimates at the request of 4th District Judge Tony Graf, who asked how long they would need to prepare and present their cases. Graf has indicated he intends to set a trial date at a hearing Friday afternoon.

Robinson, now 23, is facing seven criminal charges, including aggravated murder, in connection with Kirk’s Sept. 10, 2025, death. Robinson has pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty if he’s convicted.

Last month, Graf determined there was enough evidence for the case to move forward. In this next phase of the court case, both prosecutors and the defense will file pretrial motions that Graf will rule on. This essentially sets the ground rules about what evidence or witnesses can be presented to the jury during the trial.

Robinson’s defense team wrote that they will need substantial time to file motions about jury selection and whether the case can be fairly tried in Utah County, and they will likely also challenge Utah’s death penalty laws.

And, they said, they’ll need time to prepare for the sentencing phase of trial — if Robinson is convicted — where they will present their case about his life in an effort to sway a jury to not sentence him to death.

A lawyer for Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, has asked Graf to reject the defense’s proposal, saying that the alleged victim in the case has a right to a “speedy disposition” under the Utah Constitution and state laws.

“Under the Defendants’ proposed schedule, Mr. Kirk’s two children, who were one and three at the time he was murdered, will be six and eight years old by the time the trial concludes,” attorney Jeffrey Neiman wrote. “They will face the uncertainty of this criminal proceeding longer than they had their father in their lives.”

Citing The Salt Lake Tribune’s reporting, Neiman further noted that Robinson’s defense attorneys have already been paid $1.6 million in taxpayer money in the first year to represent him. This cost will only grow, he argued, in a trial date is set for 2029.

“With seemingly no limits on spending, the Defense has the resources to prepare for trial on a reasonable schedule,” he wrote. “Charlie’s death should not lead to the lawyers defending his assassin becoming millionaires.”

This is a developing story and will be updated.