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A Utah judge has ruled that jurors aren’t the only people who will get to see key evidence in the case against Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer.
Following four days of heated arguments in Tyler Robinson’s preliminary hearing, the court determined that Robinson’s recorded confession, alleged text messages, and other exhibits can now be shown publicly inside the courtroom.
The ruling marks a major victory for prosecutors and for Kirk’s family, who argued that the evidence should not be kept hidden from those attending the proceedings.
Robinson is accused of fatally shooting conservative commentator Charlie Kirk during a September 2025 event at Utah Valley University.
His attorneys argued that publicly displaying the confession video and other exhibits would further damage Robinson’s ability to receive a fair trial, pointing out that portions of the confession had already circulated online before the preliminary hearing began.
The judge ultimately disagreed.
Instead, the court ruled that the edited confession video, alleged text messages and other admitted evidence may be shown to members of the public attending the hearing.
The only item that will remain sealed is the final page of one exhibit because it contains personal identifying information.
Some portions of the confession video will also be redacted before being displayed.
The decision comes after Charlie Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, urged the court to make the evidence available to everyone inside the courtroom.
According to arguments presented in court, Erika said preventing the public, Charlie’s parents, and other attendees from viewing admitted exhibits undermined transparency during the hearing.
She also argued that keeping the evidence hidden had only fueled conspiracy theories surrounding her husband’s death.
The judge ultimately sided with prosecutors and rejected the defense’s constitutional objections.
As part of Thursday’s proceedings, those in the courtroom will be able to view Robinson’s post-arrest statements to investigators, along with an interview conducted with his roommate, Lance Twiggs.
Earlier this week, the court also viewed footage showing Robinson surrendering to law enforcement the day after Kirk’s death.
According to testimony presented during the hearing, authorities questioned both Robinson and his parents before Robinson was taken into custody.
Prosecutors allege Robinson shot Kirk from a rooftop roughly 200 feet away while the political activist was speaking at Utah Valley University.
Investigators also claim DNA evidence links Robinson to the alleged murder weapon.
However, Robinson’s legal team has aggressively challenged the reliability of that DNA testing throughout the preliminary hearing.
Robinson faces one count of aggravated murder along with several additional charges.
He has not yet entered a plea, and prosecutors have announced they intend to seek the death penalty if the case proceeds to trial.
We will have further updates on this developing story as new information becomes available.
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