Charlie Kirk murder suspect can wear street clothes in court but must be physically restrained, judge rules

A judge said on Monday that the 22-year-old Utah man charged with killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk can wear regular clothes to all of his pretrial hearings, but he must be physically restrained for security reasons.

Tyler Robinson’s lawyers warned that pictures of him in jail clothes and shackles would spread widely in a case that got a lot of publicity and public attention. They suggested this could affect potential jurors in the future.

Judge Tony Graf agreed to certain limited steps to maintain Robinson’s presumption of innocence before the trial. He said that the case has gotten “extraordinary” attention from the public and the media.

“Mr. Robinson should be dressed like someone who is presumed innocent,” Graf said at a virtual court session on Monday.

On September 10, Kirk, who was 31 years old, was shot and killed at Utah Valley University in Orem while speaking to a huge crowd at an outdoor debate.

Robinson was charged last month with aggravated murder, felony discharge of a handgun, two charges of obstruction of justice, two counts of witness tampering, and performing a violent crime in front of a kid. Jeff Gray, the Utah County Attorney, has announced that they will ask for the death penalty.

Judge Graf said on Monday that the charges against Robinson are very severe and pose a threat to safety in the courtroom, even though Robinson has never been in trouble with the law before. Graf said before refusing Robinson’s request to appear without restraints that the court’s top responsibility is to keep the lawyers, court officials, and Robinson himself safe during what might be stressful sessions. He did, however, tell the media that they couldn’t take pictures or videos of Robinson’s cuffs.

Robinson turned himself in to his hometown sheriff’s station in southwest Utah on September 12, along with his parents. It took them more than three hours to journey there from Orem. He is in jail in Utah County without bond and hasn’t yet entered a plea.

Last month, while police were searching the state for the gunman, Washington County Sheriff Nate Brooksby got a call from a retired cop who stated he knew who killed Kirk. “Hey, I know who shot Charlie Kirk,” he added. Brooksby said at the time, “I know the family through religion, and he’s in Washington County now. We’re trying to get him to come in on his own.”

“He didn’t want a big SWAT team to break into his parents’ house or his apartment.” Brooksby added, “He was really scared that the police would shoot him.” “So the conditions were very relaxed, comfortable, and almost welcoming.” And if we can get him to give up gently on his own at the end of the day, I’ll make some sacrifices to make that happen.

Two federal law enforcement sources told CBS News before that Robinson’s father saw the pictures that the police put out and talked to his son about them. Sources say Robinson admitted to being the guy in the pictures and stated he would rather kill himself than give himself in. This made his father call a youth pastor who was close to the family.

Authorities said Robinson had supposedly admitted to the killing in text messages with his roommate. A representative for Discord also told CBS News that Robinson seemed to admit to the shooting in conversations he sent on the site.

Judge Graf told Robinson to show up for his first public hearings in person on January 16 and 30, 2026. He showed up on a blacked-out screen from jail on Monday and just spoke to confirm that he was there.

Source: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/suspect-charlie-kirk-killing-street-clothes-court/

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