West

Tyler Robinson prosecutors say Charlie Kirk shooting texts show confusion, not bias, to rebut conflict claim

Published

2 months ago

January 14, 2026

Tyler Robinson prosecutors say Charlie Kirk shooting texts show confusion, not bias, to rebut conflict claim

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Prosecutors are urging a judge to deny accused Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson’s bid to disqualify a prosecutor, arguing there is no conflict of interest.

In a sweeping 33-page filing, submitted under seal earlier this month and now released in redacted form, the state argues the deputy prosecutor at the center of Robinson’s motion has no personal conflict despite the fact that his 18-year-old child was in the crowd when Kirk was assassinated at a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10, 2025.

Prosecutors say the teen, a student at UVU, was one of “thousands of other witnesses” and had no personal knowledge of the actual murder, never saw the shooting, and never saw a weapon.

The filing includes text messages exchanged between the prosecutor and his teenager in the minutes after the shooting, which prosecutors argue underscore that lack of firsthand knowledge.

ERIKA KIRK HAS ‘NOTHING TO SAY’ TO THE MAN ACCUSED OF KILLING HER HUSBAND

Charlie Kirk appears at Utah Valley University Sept. 10, 2025 in Orem, Utah. Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, was speaking at his “American Comeback Tour” when he was shot in the neck and killed. (Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune/Getty Images)

In the messages, the teen initially texts, “SOMEONE GOT SHOT,” and reassures family members, “I’m okay, everyone is going inside.” Only later, after hearing information from others, does the teenager text, “CHARLIE GOT SHOT,” followed by messages relaying what “people were saying” about where Kirk was hit and where the shooter may have been positioned.

Prosecutors argue the texts reflect confusion and secondhand information — not emotional trauma or direct involvement that could improperly influence prosecutorial decision-making.

Read the filing here:

The filing further details that the teen was roughly 85 feet away, had no line of sight to the shooter due to buildings blocking the view, and fled the area after hearing what sounded like a loud “pop.”

TAXPAYER COST FOR SUSPECTED CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSIN’S DEATH PENALTY CASE PREDICTED BY UTAH COMMISSIONER

The crowd reacts after Charlie Kirk, the CEO and co-founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, is shot at Utah Valley University Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025, in Orem, Utah. (Tess Crowley/The Deseret News via AP)

In a sworn affidavit, the teen described being scared in the moment but suffered no lasting trauma, required no counseling and quickly returned to normal school and work activities.

Robinson’s motion also points to the prosecution’s decision to seek the death penalty on the same day charges were filed, arguing it reflects bias or a rush to judgment.

Prosecutors reject that claim, saying the decision was based on the strength of the evidence, Utah law and a desire to curb speculation and misinformation in a case that immediately drew national and international attention.

PROSECUTORS PLAN TO ‘DIRTY UP’ KIRK SUSPECT TYLER ROBINSON TO SWAY JURY TOWARD DEATH PENALTY: FMR US ATTY

Charlie Kirk speaks before he is assassinated during Turning Point’s visit to Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah on Sept. 10, 2025. (Tess Crowley/The Deseret News via AP)

Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot while answering a question during the outdoor forum attended by roughly 3,000 people. Robinson is charged with aggravated murder and faces the possibility of the death penalty if convicted.

Defense attorneys argue that while the trauma of the shooting is undeniable, it makes prosecutorial neutrality even more essential — not less. They contend the presence of a prosecutor’s family member at the event creates an unacceptable risk that decisions could be influenced by emotion rather than evidence.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

A judge is scheduled to hear arguments on the motion Friday, Jan. 16. If the court grants Robinson’s request, the entire Utah County Attorney’s Office could be removed from the case, forcing the appointment of a special prosecutor and potentially delaying trial proceedings — including the state’s pursuit of the death penalty.

Fox News’ Lee Ross and Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.

Stepheny Price covers crime, including missing persons, homicides and migrant crime. Send story tips to stepheny.price@fox.com.

Stepheny Price is a Writer at Fox News with a focus on West Coast and Midwest news, missing persons, national and international crime stories, homicide cases, and border security.

Read the full article from Here

Related Topics:Charlie Kirk crime world homicide in court tyler robinson us Utah

Click to comment

Montana

Montana’s measures to tackle housing crunch offer hope for Michigan

Published

1 hour ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

Montana’s measures to tackle housing crunch offer hope for Michigan

News Story

State House considers reforms that allowed greater variety of construction in Big Sky State

Michigan could follow Montana’s lead after state House members introduced a bipartisan package of bills aimed at making housing less costly.

“The bipartisan Housing Readiness Package modernizes our development processes to reduce unnecessary costs and delays, making housing more affordable and available across the state,” according to a press release from the House Republican caucus. “This is about ensuring Michigan is prepared for growth and that more residents have access to safe, stable homes.”

The package draws on ideas Montana successfully enacted in 2023 and 2025 to ease the state’s housing shortage. It includes Michigan House bills 5529, 5530, 5531, 5532, 5581, 5582, 5583, 5584 and 5585. The package is intended to restrain cities and counties from restricting accessory dwelling units, duplexes, and other non-single-family units; to limit protests and impact studies on developments; and to reduce local red tape.

Housing costs in Michigan have almost doubled in recent years, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Michigan has exceeded the pace of housing inflation found in other states.

The average price of homes in the state was about 75% of the national average in 2012, but it is roughly 82% of the average today, according to Jarrett Skorup, vice president of marketing and communications at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.

Inflation, interest rates, and rising construction costs have increased housing prices, Skorup told Michigan Capitol Confidential, but local government red tape is still making things worse.

“A lot of this is because of dumb, unnecessary, big-government policies at the local level,” Skorup told CapCon in an email. “This bill package protects the private property rights of citizens in a way similar to what Montana and many other states have done. It is good policy that will help people afford to live where they want.”

Montana made changes to legalize duplexes, allow accessory dwelling units, open commercial zones to housing, and permit taller buildings that can accommodate more housing units.

The laws faced a legal challenge, but the Montana Supreme Court unanimously upheld the bipartisan legislation.

“There are a lot of similarities between what is being proposed in Michigan and what we accomplished in Montana,” Forrest Mandeville, a Republican state senator from Stillwater County, told Michigan Capitol Confidential in an email.

Montana enacted laws that call for freedom to build duplexes and accessory dwelling units by right (with no need for extra approvals) in many cities. The Big Sky State also streamlined review processes and simplified public participation.

“These reforms were necessitated by a housing market that was seeing prices skyrocket and existing zoning that created a lot of single-family-only development in large areas,” Mandeville said.

A broad coalition supported the changes: builders, real estate agents, free-market advocates and some local government groups, Mandeville told CapCon. Housing prices and rents have stabilized since the legislation was enacted.

“We tried to get government out of the way to encourage building without red tape,” Sen. Jeremy Trebas, a Cascade County Republican, told CapCon in an email about the housing situation in Bozeman. With a population of 60,000 and slow growth, the city faced a housing crunch, with a large inventory of aging and obsolete buildings. Expensive housing and taxes, Trebas said, were driving people to move to Washington, California and other states.

“If we could change land-use policy, encourage development of higher density like duplexes as infill, allow for housing in commercial zones (as it was a 100 years ago), reduce minimum lot sizes, and allow by-right accessory dwelling units and such, we could let the market work to produce density and supply without spending government dollars to incentivize it,” Trebas said.

Opponents of Montana’s reforms expressed concerns about more people moving in from out-of-state, said Trebas. He countered that Montana natives were hurt by high costs that price upcoming generations out of the housing market.

Source link

Nevada

Scholarships available for Nevada Youth Range Camp

Published

1 hour ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

Scholarships available for Nevada Youth Range Camp

The Nevada Division of Forestry and the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management are inviting high school-aged students from around the Silver State to participate in the 2026 Nevada Youth Range Camp essay competition.

“The Nevada Youth Range Camp is a yearly educational opportunity that has been held each summer in central Nevada since 1961,” stated a press release. “Last year, eight students were awarded scholarships and received a certificate of achievement.”

Selected essays will receive up to $250 to register for this year’s Youth Range Camp. Students must be between ages 14 and 18 in order to apply. Parental consent is also required. Essays that are flagged for plagiarism or that utilize AI will be disqualified.

“Range Camp has served Nevada’s youth for 65 years. It is a great opportunity for anyone interested in natural resources to learn basic rangeland and resource management skills,” said Kelcey Hein, Conservation Education lead at the Nevada Division of Forestry, in a statement.

According to the application form, this year’s essay prompt is:

“In your own words, tell a story or a few stories of when you were able to connect with a natural space such as a park, your backyard, a farm, a field, a forest, a beach, or so on. Please incorporate three (3) key words from the key word list that you noticed of that ecosystem into your response. Explain what you noticed about these aspects that drew your attention in that space. How did this influence you and your goals as a future steward of Natural Resources?”

Visit bit.ly/RangeCamp2026 for submission forms, essay instructions and the full rules. The contest is open until April 30.

For more information about the Nevada Division of Forestry, visit forestry.nv.gov.

Visit nevada.rangelands.org for more information about the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management.

Contact reporter Elijah Dulay at edulay@pvtimes.com

Nevada Youth Range Camp: June 21 through June 27

“We invite high school youth to enjoy a week of fun, camping, and learning about rangelands and natural resource management,” states the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management website. “This year the camp headquarters will be located in the Timber Creek Campground area Northwest of McGill, NV. This area provides a splendid setting for learning and recreation.”

“The week is filled with many learning opportunities. Instructors teach various subjects through group investigations. Camp instructors and counselors are trained specialists from the University of Nevada, Reno; Nevada State Parks; Natural Resources Conservation Service; Bureau of Land Management; Forest Service; Nevada Division of Forestry; Nevada Division of Conservation Districts; Nevada Division of Wildlife; and others,” the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management website continues.

“Campers arrive by noon on Sunday and break camp the following Saturday morning. Campers register and form groups with an adult counselor and assistant youth counselor. The weeklong program runs from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and includes instruction, projects, rest, meals, and recreation,” the Nevada Section of the Society for Range Management website reads further. “Adult supervision occurs throughout the entire week. Parents and sponsors are welcome to visit the camp any time and are especially invited for the Friday night awards program. The evening programs are geared more for enjoyment and personal interest and include map and compass orientation, conservation skill workshops, wildlife presentations, and campfires.”

Source link