Less than 4 miles from the rooftop at Utah Valley University where prosecutors allege he fired the shot that killed conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Tyler James Robinson appeared over video to hear the charges he faces in a Provo courtroom Tuesday afternoon.
Sitting in a room at the Utah County jail, Robinson was wearing a quilted suicide-prevention smock. He maintained a straight face throughout the 15-minute hearing.
Robinson didn’t speak except to share his name.
Reporters from national and international outlets crammed into 4th District Judge Tony Graf’s courtroom to watch the proceedings. Many migrated from a news conference held earlier in the afternoon a few blocks away, where Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray announced he intends to seek Robinson’s execution.
Robinson is accused of shooting the controversial Turning Point USA founder less than a week ago, on Sept. 10, as the 31-year-old answered a student’s question on the first stop of Kirk’s planned “American Comeback Tour.”
Filed around noon Tuesday, those charges include seven offenses: aggravated murder, a first-degree felony; discharge of a firearm, a first-degree felony; two counts of obstruction of justice, second-degree felonies; two counts of tampering with a witness, third-degree felonies; and a misdemeanor count of violence committed in the presence of a child.
According to charging documents, investigators learned through conversations with Robinson’s family members that he had recently “become more political and had started to lean more to the left — becoming more pro-gay and trans-rights oriented.”
Prominent Utah criminal defense attorney Greg Skordas appeared in court to say Robinson does not yet have a lawyer but that he is working with Utah County to help secure one.
Graf told Robinson that he had reviewed a financial declaration submitted to the court and found Robinson indigent, meaning the defendant has a low enough income to qualify for government-funded representation.
(Scott G Winterton | Pool) Fourth District Court Judge Tony Graf conducts a hearing as Tyler Robinson, 22, the suspect in the shooting death of Charlie Kirk, appears by camera on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, for his initial appearance.
Robinson’s next hearing is scheduled for Monday, Sept. 29. Skordas confirmed that the county will have appointed Robinson’s counsel by then.
Prosecutors told the court they hope to secure a pretrial protective order for Kirk’s wife, Erika Kirk. The judge said he plans to grant that order.
Before his death, Kirk was scheduled to visit Utah State University in Logan later this month as part of his tour. His wife has said that tour will continue as planned — meaning the scheduled Sept. 30 Turning Point USA event in northern Utah will take place the day after Robinson’s next court appearance.
“The evildoers responsible for my husband’s assassination have no idea what they have done,” his widow said in a speech Friday. “If you thought that my husband’s mission was powerful before, you have no idea. You have no idea what you just have unleashed across this entire country.”
Utah County sheriff’s deputies working at the courthouse described Tuesday’s security as “all hands on deck.”
Their agency was heavily involved in the response to the shooting at the Orem campus as law enforcement evacuated students, faculty and staff — and searched for the shooter.
At the news conference earlier Tuesday, Gray called the shooting an “American tragedy,” and “an offense against the state and to the peace and enjoyment of the people of Utah.”
President Donald Trump, who has credited Kirk with playing a role in his 2024 victory, reacted to the charges by calling Utah “competent,” and praising its death penalty statute as “tough.”
The president added that Robinson “may or may not” also face federal charges.