A Utah judge has ruled that the county attorney’s office can continue prosecuting the man accused of assassinating conservative figure Charlie Kirk, rejecting defense claims that a conflict of interest tainted the case.
According to Fox News, during a hearing, Judge Tony Graf said he found no evidence of bias that would justify removing prosecutors.
He stated the court was “unpersuaded” that there was any “appearance of bias” and concluded the defense had not met the legal threshold required to disqualify the team.
Tyler Robinson’s attorneys argued the office should be removed because one prosecutor has a child who attended the Sept. 10 event at Utah Valley University, where Kirk was killed.
They claimed that the connection created a constitutional concern and compromised Robinson’s right to a fair trial.
Graf disagreed. “Because defendant has not established a factual basis for a finding of conflict of interest or an objective appearance of impropriety, rising to a constitutional concern, his motion is respectfully denied,” he said.
The issue has been examined in multiple hearings. Earlier this month, defense attorney Richard Novak questioned Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray about when the decision was made to pursue the death penalty, which was announced shortly after Robinson’s arrest.
Testimony from a senior prosecutor indicated Gray expressed early on that he intended to seek capital punishment and wanted that decision made public when charges were filed.
Prosecutors acknowledged the child’s presence at the event but maintained it did not create a conflict.
They noted that thousands of people attended and said the child did not have a direct line of sight to the shooter. Even if a conflict existed, they argued, it would not affect the entire office.
Graf also rejected claims that the situation violated Robinson’s due process rights.
“In sum, the defendant has not shown that there is a significant risk that Mr. Gray’s loyalty to his daughter has or will materially limit representation of the state,” he said. “Nor has defendant demonstrated that his due process rights are compromised by the continued prosecution of this case by the Utah County Attorney’s Office.”
Robinson faces the death penalty if convicted of the killing. The next court hearing is scheduled for March 13.
