Utah prosecutors say they have enough evidence to move forward against Tyler Robinson, the man charged with assassinating conservative activist Charlie Kirk, even without the DNA analysis they originally planned to present.
In a new court filing, prosecutors said they are prepared to proceed with the May 18 preliminary hearing as scheduled, with or without the DNA evidence tying Robinson to the crime scene.
“The State has made this decision after concluding that the other evidence it intends to introduce is more than sufficient to establish probable cause for bindover,” prosecutors wrote, as reported by Fox News. “However, if the Court finds that the State’s introduction of that evidence at the preliminary hearing warrants a continuance, the State is prepared—in the interest of moving this case forward—to proceed with the preliminary hearing as scheduled without the DNA evidence. The State has made this decision after concluding that the other evidence it intends to introduce is more than sufficient to establish probable cause for bindover.”
The filing signals confidence heading into a hearing that Robinson’s own defense team has tried repeatedly to delay. Defense attorneys asked Judge Tony Graf in late March for at least a six-month postponement, citing a mountain of discovery materials. Prosecutors handed over more than 600,000 files during a March 12 meeting.
Judge Graf is expected to rule this Friday on whether the May 18 hearing proceeds on schedule.
The DNA dispute isn’t the only front where prosecutors are fighting for the facts. In an April 30 filing, Deputy Utah County Attorney Christopher Ballard accused Robinson’s defense of misleading the public on ballistics evidence.
The defense had claimed the ATF “was unable to identify” the bullet recovered at autopsy as having been fired from a rifle tied to Robinson. Ballard called that framing “misstated.”
“Defendant reinforced this misleading inference by following it up with, ‘the defense may very well decide to offer the testimony of the ATF firearm analyst as exculpatory evidence,'” Ballard wrote.
The ATF report, according to Ballard, actually found the results were inconclusive. The agency could not identify the bullet as coming from Robinson’s rifle, but also could not exclude it. The defense left out that second half.
