More than a month has passed since the tragic murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University, and court watchers are closely following developments in the case against the man accused of committing the heinous crime.
As Breitbart reports, as defendant Tyler Robinson prepares for upcoming appearances in the courtroom, he is asking the presiding judge to allow him to present himself not in prison garb and shackles, but rather in civilian clothes.
The accused killer’s request came in the form of a 21-page motion submitted to Judge Tony Graf last week, a document that outlined the defense team’s rationale for the desired adjustment.
Robinson’s attorneys made reference to the Idaho murder case of Bryan Kohberger in their contention that allowing their client to wear civilian attire would help secure his constitutional right to a fair trial.
In addition to their request regarding Robinson’s clothing, defense lawyers also now seek a closed-door hearing regarding whether physical restraints will be used during courtroom appearances.
The motion stated, “In the face of worldwide scrutiny, permitting Mr. Robinson to wear civilian clothing for court appearances is a minor inconvenience compared to the already present concerns with securing a fair trial before an impartial jury.”
Their filing continued, “With each development in the case generating thousands of articles and comments online, the likelihood of potential jurors seeing and drawing conclusions regarding Mr. Robinson’s guilt and or deserved punishment from obvious signs of pretrial incarceration will only increase.”
It is not just Robinson’s trial attire on which his defense team is focusing, as attorneys are busy developing their approach to evidence in the case and strategic arguments in furtherance of their attempt to secure an acquittal -- or at the very least prevent the imposition of the death penalty upon conviction.
Speaking to Fox News Digital, veteran defense attorney Randall Spencer described some of the priorities likely guiding the work of Robinson’s team.
Spencer noted how critical it will be to maintain the confidentiality of evidence ahead of trial in order to safeguard the impartiality of potential jurors.
“If the prosecutor or the defense of leaking…evidence to the public…that may inhibit Tyler’s right to a fair trial.”
In terms of potential defense theories, Spencer opined, “There perhaps could be a factual innocence defense being raised indicating that Tyler wasn’t actually the shooter. Probably more likely the defense…is addressing the aggravating factor…whether the defendant’s alleged actions had a high probability of causing the death of someone other than Charlie Kirk,” suggesting that such a pivot -- if successful -- could shift the charge downward “from capital homicide to standard murder.”
Even so, former Assistant U.S. Attorney Neama Rahmani suspects that prosecutors in the case will focus on efforts to “dirty up” Robinson to boost the chances that, if convicted, he will receive the death penalty, working to present evidence of alleged statements from the defendant regarding Kirk’s supposed “hatred,” his apparent admission of guilt to a romantic partner, and incriminating words said to have been etched on bullets used in the crime.
Noting that 12 of 12 jurors must agree for Robinison to be put to death, Rahmani observed, “So when jurors are weighing the death penalty, the reason why someone killed another human being, if it was for political reasons, that’s certainly an aggravated factor” but whether such consensus will be reached at the end of the process, only time will tell.
