Here’s What You Need To Know About The Charlie Kirk Assassination Trial, Day 5
Whether Tyler Robinson will stand trial for the assassination of Charlie Kirk won't be decided until September.Whether Tyler Robinson will stand trial for the assassination of Charlie Kirk won't be decided until September.Tyler Robinson refuses to testify after prosecutors bury him with evidence
The preliminary hearing regarding whether to try Tyler Robinson for his alleged assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk drew to close on Friday with state District Judge Tony Graf now in the possession of a wealth of damning evidence.
Over the course of the five-day hearing, the court heard or saw:
- surveillance camera footage showing the suspected assassin skulking around campus on the day of the shooting, developing a stiff leg after an apparent costume change, climbing onto a rooftop, running to a "sniper pad" on the rooftop overlooking the site where Kirk was shot, and dropping down from the roof immediately after the shooting, then fleeing the scene with "some kind of object" in his hand;
- that Robinson ate a Chick-fil-A on campus, where he was not a student, and allegedly interacted with TPUSA staff at the scene;
- a video of Robinson's homosexual lover Lance Twiggs' deposition, where he claimed that the individual seen in the surveillance footage "definitely" looked like Robinson;
- Twiggs' testimony that Robinson left their shared apartment unusually early on the day of the shooting, had "started crying a bit" when he came back the morning after, and had told Twiggs "he wishes he hadn't done it";
- Twiggs' testimony that he lent Robinson a tool to engrave some ammunition, especially relevant because the suspected murder weapon contained ammunition with engravings that included "Hey fascist! Catch" and "If you read this, you are gay, LMAO";
- text messages between the gay lovers in which Robinson allegedly referred to one of the engravings on the ammunition, allegedly writing, "If I see 'uwu notices bulge' on fox new [sic] I might have a stroke";
- text messages between Robinson and Twiggs in which the suspected killer allegedly admitted to killing Kirk, told his boyfriend that he "had enough of [Kirk's] hatred," and discussed retrieving his rifle from a "drop point" and leaving behind "no evidence";
- testimony from Utah Department of Public Safety Sgt. Jennifer Faumuina indicating that the two sets of male DNA discovered on the towel wrapped around the suspected murder weapon were a match to Twiggs and very likely to Robinson;
- testimony from David Hull, a former Utah State Bureau of Investigation special agent who led the probe in the assassination, that a male was spotted by a Spanish Forks police officer in a car registered to Robinson near Campus Drive early on Sept. 11, the day after the assassination; and
- testimony on Friday from Caitlin Oliver, a forensic biologist at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, that testing on swabs taken from several parts of the suspected murder weapon and the ammunition supports the conclusion that the DNA found was primarily contributed by Robinson.
On Friday, a zoomed-in version of the footage allegedly showing Robinson crawling out to a "sniper's perch" was also shown in the courtroom.
The footage was not, however, broadcast for public consumption in part because a media cameraman had violated a court order on Thursday, accidentally showing an exhibit that was not allowed to be published — a handwritten note allegedly from Robinson to Twiggs in which the author wrote,
If you are reading this per my text, then I am so sorry. I left the house this morning on a mission, and set an auto text. I am likely dead, or facing a lengthy prison sentence. I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I took it. I don't know if I will/have succeeded, but I had hoped to make it home to you.
While the evidence was already public, having previously appeared in the search warrant released in March, the defense made a fuss such that the violation dominated the discussion for the early portion of Friday's hearing.
Robinson chose not to testify during the pretrial hearing and has not entered a plea.
RELATED: Hearing bombshell as gay lover ties Tyler Robinson to damning evidence in Kirk assassination
Robinson faces charges of aggravated murder, a capital first-degree felony; felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury; committing a violent offense in the presence of a child; two counts of obstruction of justice — a second-degree felony; and two counts of witness tampering for allegedly telling his boyfriend to delete his text messages and to stay quiet if questioned by police.
The hearing will resume on Sept. 1, when both the prosecution and the defense will be afforded one last opportunity to make their final arguments to Graf about whether Robinson should stand trial.
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Watch live: Day 5 of the Charlie Kirk assassination Tyler Robinson pretrial hearing
Friday is the final day of the preliminary hearing to determine whether there is enough probable cause to bind Tyler Robinson over for trial in the murder of Charlie Kirk.
Thursday, day four, was an absolute bombshell for the prosecution, as Lance Twiggs, Robinson's trans-identifying gay lover, admitted that the individual seen on surveillance footage did "look like Tyler Robinson."
Twiggs also told the court that the day after Kirk's murder, Robinson returned to their apartment, cried, "and said he wishes he hadn't done it."
Tune in for Day 5 below:
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Asylum-seeking boyfriend of American mother flees Ireland after her brutal murder
Yet another violent attack in the U.K. involving a migrant suspect has occurred, this time leaving an American woman dead.
Irish police and emergency services responded on Tuesday to a rented home in the southwestern town of Killarney, where the bloody body of 43-year-old New York native Jamey Carney had been discovered by her 13-year-old daughter.
'Do not use this to become bigoted or racist or prejudiced in any way.'
Following a postmortem examination by state pathologist Linda Mulligan, police launched a murder investigation into Carney's death — an investigation aided by the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the Garda National Immigration Bureau.
While Carney suffered a brutal assault and significant head injuries, Mulligan concluded that suffocation was the ultimate cause of death, reported the Irish Times. Carney had moved to Ireland with her daughter in 2021.
Early in their investigation, authorities determined that "a person of interest" had "left the jurisdiction in the early hours of Tuesday 7th July prior to the body of the deceased female being discovered."
The suspect, who has been identified as 28-year-old Ahmad Al-Saqar, is believed to have successfully boarded a flight at Dublin Airport bound for Istanbul, Turkey, just prior to the discovery of the body.
Irish police are reportedly working with Europol and Interpol in hopes of establishing whether Al-Saqar is still in Turkey or has traveled to another Middle Eastern location.
Al-Saqar, who features in Carney's profile picture on Facebook, is originally from Jordan and apparently has contacts in Syria and Turkey. He reportedly launched an asylum bid in Ireland after arriving there in 2024.
According to Extra.ie, while asylum-seekers must surrender their passports to the International Protection Office at the time of making their applications, Irish authorities gave Al-Saqar his passport back because he had been granted subsidiary protection — status given to someone who doesn't qualify as a refugee but would supposedly face "serious" harm if sent back to his home country.
A police source told the Irish Times that the suspect was not only known to Carney but regularly stayed at her home. Their apparent 18-month romantic relationship complicates the investigation because if ultimately questioned, he could explain away his DNA on the premises.
According to the Irish Sun, Carney and Al-Saqar are believed to have met at an anti-war protest. Carney had "Free Palestine" and "Fk Ice" in her Facebook bio.
In a recent social media post, Al-Saqar reportedly referred to the American mother as "my bride and my princess."
Al-Saqar was seen with Carney on Sunday and Monday, reported the Irish Independent.
The U.S. State Department told Newsweek that the agency has provided consular assistance to Carney's family.
"The Trump administration has no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans," said a State Department spokesperson. "We offer our sincerest condolences to the family and loved ones on their loss."
A big concern for the Irish police is presently the possibility of American political figures on the right "stirring tensions in the Republic," reported the Times.
This concern was echoed by Ryan Fox, a cousin of Carney, who told Irish state media that he didn't want her death to become "some kind of martyrdom or some kind of political cause."
"Do not use this to become bigoted or racist or prejudiced in any way. Bad people are in every group, and it is not the people who look like them who deserve to be blamed," said Fox.
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Here’s What You Need To Know About The Charlie Kirk Assassination Trial, Day 4
Judge Tony Graf will make a determination as to whether this case will go to trial Friday after a review of all evidence entered.IVF Couple ‘Devastated’ By Sperm Mix-Up After Depriving Child Of Biological And Birth Mothers
The flippancy IVF demonstrates toward a mother's DNA by encouraging the use of surrogates and donor eggs turns women into 'interchangable body bags.'Here’s What You Need To Know About The Charlie Kirk Assassination Trial, Day 3
Tyler Robinson turning himself in to authorities and Lance Twiggs' interview with law enforcement were focal points during Wednesday's hearing.Here’s What You Need To Know About The Charlie Kirk Assassination Trial, Day 2
The court admitted video evidence showing a man alleged to be Robinson jumping off the roof with a long, rifle-like object in his hand concealed by a cloth.Judge watches damning footage of Charlie Kirk's suspected assassin developing a stiff leg, heading to 'sniper pad'
Prosecutors must convince state District Judge Tony Graf over the course of this week's five-day preliminary hearing that they have sufficient evidence for him to try Charlie Kirk's suspected assassin, Tyler Robinson, for aggravated murder.
They have so far given Graf plenty to work with — and given the defense a great deal of explaining to do.
'The shoes are the same, and from my viewing and seeing Mr. Robinson on the video, it's the same person,' an investigator said.
Graf heard on Monday about: Robinson's alleged "sniper pad" on the roof of the Losee Center building, which overlooks the site at Utah Valley University where Kirk was fatally shot; the discovery of a red-and-black screwdriver at the "crime scene" that FBI Director Kash Patel previously alleged had Robinson's DNA on it; and the events immediately surrounding the shooting. The judge also saw — and was literally moved by — graphic footage of Kirk's murder.
The footage shown in court on Tuesday — which the defense wanted suppressed — was especially damning.
David Hull, a former Utah State Bureau of Investigation special agent who led the probe in the assassination, walked the court through a compilation of CCTV footage that he said shows Robinson's movements on Sept. 10.
According to Hull, the clips allegedly show Robinson:
- driving into a parking garage, parking, then walking off — wearing a backpack and dressed in Converse shoes, a ball cap, shorts, and a maroon T-shirt — to the university's quad area, where he allegedly made contact with representatives from Turning Point USA before returning to his car and driving off;
- wearing the same outfit, returning to the campus on foot, and walking to a fast-food restaurant on the northeast side of the area where Kirk was ultimately shot;
- walk after his meal into a wooded area on campus, then return wearing a new set of clothes, no longer carrying a backpack and now limping with a visibly stiff right leg and apparent hip-level bulge toward "the railing that gives access to the roof of the Losee building";
- ascending the staircase that affords scalers access to the Losee building rooftop just minutes before Kirk was shot — then rolling over the railing onto the rooftop;
- no longer limping but running along the rooftop of the Losee building "to what would be the southwest corner of the building," then crawling over to the apparent shooting position, where he was prone at 12:23:28 p.m., when a Utah Valley University police officer stated over his radio, "Alpha 34, we have shots fired. Charlie Kirk is down"; and
- running to the edge of the Losee building's rooftop, then dropping down onto a grassy area, then fleeing the scene with "some kind of object" in his hand.
"The shoes are the same, and from my viewing and seeing Mr. Robinson on the video, it's the same person," Hull said when asked about the suspect in the footage following his pre-shooting wardrobe change.
While Hull acknowledged in court that the surveillance footage of the suspect on the rooftop did not reveal any distinguishing facial features, the videos nevertheless provide a potentially convincing account of Robinson's movements on campus the day of the shooting.
The prosecution also showed footage of an encounter near Campus Drive between Tyler Robinson and a Spanish Fork police officer early on Sept. 11, the day after the assassination. This gave the officer pause and prompted him to make a note of the license plate number.
Once Hull learned of the encounter by Spanish Fork police and noted that the car involved matched the description of a car believed to be involved in the Kirk assassination, he ran the license plate. It was then he learned that the car was registered to Tyler Robinson and his mother, Amber.
The clips, along with enhanced versions with circled highlights, zooming, and other slight tweaks intended to help viewers understand what they were seeing, were admitted as evidence.
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