Prosecutors Seek Trial For Tyler Robinson After Charlie Kirk Assassination At Utah Valley University

A former Utah Valley University officer, Christopher Bagley, testified Monday that he found an apparent “sniper pad” on a rooftop near where conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated at a Utah Valley University event, as prosecutors sought to convince a state judge they have enough evidence to put Utah man Tyler Robinson on trial for murder.

“'Painful reminder': Charlie Kirk's family speaks as accused killer's hearing begins Donald Trump Jr”

ABC News

Bagley said he witnessed Kirk’s shooting while Kirk was speaking to a crowd of thousands and then went to a nearby gravel rooftop where it appeared someone had been lying prone with a clear sightline to Kirk’s location.

ABC News

Bagley told the court, “It looks like a sniper pad,” adding, “you’ve got markings of elbows, knees and feet,” while the hearing proceeded in Provo, Utah.

Prosecutors’ case is being presented in a five-day preliminary hearing, and the standard at this stage is lower than at trial, where prosecutors must prove guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Donald Trump Jr. attended the Utah court hearing on Monday, joining Kirk’s widow Erika Kirk and Kirk’s parents Robert and Kathryn Kirk as prosecutors previewed evidence in the case against 23-year-old Tyler Robinson.

As the first witness, Bagley described hearing a gunshot while Kirk was answering a question, saying, “I saw him go to the left ... I could no longer see the right side of his body,” and then “everybody started getting up and started to run, more of a chaos situation.”

Associated Press

Bagley also testified that after the shooting he went to the roof of the Losee Center and saw something out of place on the graveled roof, which he described as a “sniper pad,” and he later acknowledged he never took custody of an empty pistol holster found after the crowd fled.

Prosecutors told Judge Tony Graf they plan to call law enforcement witnesses and present 40 to 50 exhibits during the weeklong proceeding, with the videos of the Sept. 10 shooting shown on a courtroom monitor.

Utah prosecutors are seeking to convince the judge to advance Robinson’s case to trial and to seek the death penalty if he is found guilty, with the five-day preliminary hearing described as the most significant presentation of evidence to date.

“PROVO, Utah (AP) — A former campus police officer testified Monday that he found an apparent “sniper pad” on a rooftop near whereCharlie Kirk was assassinated, as prosecutors sought to convince a state judge they have enough evidence to put aUtah man on trialfor murder”

Athens Daily Review

The hearing is taking place in Fourth District Court in Provo, Utah, and Robinson has not yet entered a plea, while his attorneys have sought to get the death penalty taken off the table so far unsuccessfully.

Kirk’s family released a statement saying, “Charlie was a beloved husband, son, brother, friend, and father,” and they said, “Every court proceeding serves as a painful reminder of his death and the loss that has irrevocably impacted our lives.”

As prosecutors lay out their evidence, they plan to argue the shooting endangered others at Kirk’s campus event as an aggravating circumstance that could make the crime punishable by death under Utah law, and once the hearing is finished Judge Tony Graf must decide whether there is enough evidence for the case to proceed to trial.