Erika Kirk, Prosecutors Score Legal Win In Death Penalty Case Against Tyler Robinson

A Utah judge has rejected a bid to boot the entire Utah County Attorney’s Office from prosecuting the man accused of assassinating conservative leader Charlie Kirk, handing prosecutors a clear path to continue pursuing the death penalty.

Tyler Robinson’s defense team had argued that the office was tainted because a deputy prosecutor’s child attended the Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University where Kirk was gunned down last year. They asked that the entire office be recused from the case.

The court wasn’t buying it.

“The court is unpersuaded that Mr. Grunander’s relationship with (his child) creates an appearance of bias in this case,” Utah District Court Judge Tony Graf said from the bench Tuesday.

During a split two-day hearing earlier this year, Deputy County Attorney Chad Grunander testified that his 18-year-old child, a UVU student, was present at the event. Prosecutors said the teen did not witness the shooting and was not in a position to identify a suspect.

In the aftermath of the killing, Grunander told colleagues his child had attended the event. Utah County Attorney Jeffrey Gray later assigned him to help prosecute Robinson.

RELATED: Erika Kirk Invokes Rare Law In Tyler Robinson Trial

Gray told the court the child’s presence was “completely irrelevant” to decisions in the case, including the move to seek the death penalty.

The office disclosed the potential issue to Robinson’s attorneys on Oct. 20, just over a month after Kirk was killed.

Defense attorney Richard Novak insisted that was not enough, accusing Gray of taking an “inappropriately casual approach.”

“The decision as to what charges to file, the decision as to whether or not to seek the death penalty, should never, ever have been made in consultation with Mr. Grunander,” Novak argued.

Novak pushed for the full recusal of the prosecutor’s office, not just the removal of one attorney. He framed the issue as one of process rather than direct harm.

When asked whether his child’s attendance affected his judgment, Grunander answered plainly: “No, not at all.”

He testified that it was clear his child was not in the “zone of danger,” referring to the legal doctrine used to determine immediate risk of physical harm.

“Don’t mistake our disclosure, my disclosure, our abundance of caution, our professionalism, integrity, to be a concession that we believe there’s merit to this alleged conflict,” he told the court.

RELATED: Tyler Robinson Moves to Block Video of Charlie Kirk Shooting From Being Introduced as Evidence

Judge Graf ultimately sided with prosecutors, allowing the office to remain on the case.

Robinson faces a sweeping list of charges, including aggravated murder, felony use of a firearm, obstruction of justice and witness tampering. Prosecutors have also filed multiple victim-targeting enhancements and cited the aggravating factor of committing a violent offense in the presence of a child. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.

Robinson has not yet entered a plea. His preliminary hearing is set to begin May 18 and is expected to last three days. An arraignment will follow.

One of Robinson’s attorneys, Kathy Nester, did not attend Tuesday’s virtual hearing. She is also representing Kouri Richins in a separate, high-profile murder trial in Park City.

With the recusal effort denied, prosecutors will continue building what they argue is a capital case in the assassination of one of the nation’s most prominent young conservative voices.

Download the FREE Trending Politics App to get the latest news FIRST >>