A 22-year-old man accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk smirked as he made his first public appearance in court.
Tyler Robinson was flanked by his legal team as they pushed to further limit media access in the high-profile criminal case.
It was the first time Robinson was seen in person after making previous court appearances via video or audio feed from jail.
He is accused of aggravated murder after father-of-two Kirk was shot dead in front of a crowd of 3,000 students at Utah Valley University in September.
He was seen smiling as he engaged in deep conversation with his legal team before the hearing started.
As he entered the courtroom in a shirt, tie and trousers the alleged killer smiled at people sitting in a row reserved for family, where his mother teared up and wiped her eyes with a tissue and his father wrote notes. His brother was also in court with him.
Robinson’s lawyers and the Utah County Sheriff’s Office have asked Judge Tony Graf to ban cameras during proceedings.
Shortly after proceedings began, Graf briefly stopped a media livestream of the hearing and ordered the camera be moved after Robinson’s attorneys said it showed their client’s shackles on his ankles in violation of a courtroom order.
Graf said he would terminate future broadcasts if there were further violations in October.
He has already made allowances to protect Robinson’s presumption of innocence before a trial, agreeing that the case has drawn ”extraordinary” public attention.
Kirk’s widow Erika Kirk, who has been battling conspiracy theories about her husband’s death, and a coalition of national and local news organisations pushed for transparency in the case.
The defendant faces several charges, including aggravated murder, and could face the death penalty if convicted. He has not yet entered a plea.
He turned himself in to authorities after an extensive manhunt following Kirk’s shooting in front of hundreds at an open-air event at Utah Valley University in Orem on September 10.
Robinson is due to make his next in-person appearance during a hearing on January 16.
His legal team says his pretrial publicity reaches as far as the White House, with Donald Trump announcing soon after his arrest: “With a high degree of certainty, we have him”, and “I hope he gets the death penalty.”
Authorities say Robinson held a “leftist ideology” and may have been “radicalised” online before he was arrested for killing the MAGA influencer.
