The prosecution in the Charlie Kirk murder case argued this week that messages carved into bullets suggest Kirk was targeted for his political beliefs.
The Tuesday court filing came in response to arguments from Tyler Robinson’s defense team, which sought to prove the evidence against Robinson is not sufficient to proceed to trial and that he should not face the death penalty.
Prosecutors have accused Robinson of shooting Kirk during the conservative activist’s event at Utah Valley University in September 2025. In court filings, they’ve sought to show Robinson should be eligible for a death penalty sentence if he is convicted at trial.
“The only way that you can move to that second phase is if the jury decides that there is the presence of an aggravating factor that would make the case death-eligible ... There has to be some aggravating factor that elevates it to the worst of the worst type of murder,” Paul Cassell, a law professor at the University of Utah, told Scripps News.
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The state has argued the aggravating factor is the possibility others could have been killed, beyond Kirk, when Robinson fired “a high-powered rifle into a crowd of thousands.”
The defense argued that because Robinson is accused of firing a “single shot from a high-powered, scoped rifle from a rooftop vantage that hit the intended target,” the prosecution cannot prove he created a high risk to others, so the suspect should not face the death penalty.
“His defense team has fought every battle that they need to,” Utah-based criminal defense attorney Skye Lazaro said. “The goal in these death penalty cases is always to get death off the table.”
Prosecutors have also sought to enhance the potential penalties against Robinson by arguing that he targeted Kirk because of his political views.
In Tuesday’s filing, prosecutors argued that ammunition found engraved with the phrase, “Hey fascist, catch!” is proof Kirk was shot because of Robinson’s “perception of Mr. Kirk’s political expression.” The defense argued the prosecution is simply speculating that Robinson targeted Kirk because of his views.
The arguments come ahead of a September hearing in which the judge is expected to decide whether there was enough evidence presented at a July preliminary hearing for the case to proceed to trial.
“My prediction is the judge will bind the case over, both as to the murder charge that’s been filed and as to the capital aggravator that’s been filed, because there is significant evidence here that there was a risk to other persons,” Cassell said.
Lazaro said it is not typical to have so much debate about the potential sentence before a case is bound over.
“This case has been far different than a lot of cases that we see because from the onset, even before they had named a suspect, we had a lot of political figureheads really calling for the death penalty to be imposed in this case,” she said. “The defense is doing a great job in this. They've treated this as a death penalty case from day one.”
