The Utah County Attorney, Jeff Gray, is seeking the death penalty for Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Gray formally charged Robinson with felony aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, two counts of felony obstruction of justice, two counts of witness tampering, and commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child.
According to Axios, Gray called the murder “an American tragedy,” stating that Kirk was “murdered while engaging in one of our most sacred and cherished American rights, the bedrock of our democratic republic, the free exchange of ideas and a search for truth, understanding, and a more perfect union.” This comes after Trump asked for the penalty for the alleged killer on Truth Social.
The prosecution’s case is built on a number of key details revealed in the charging documents. According to prosecutors, Robinson told his roommate in a text message, “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it.” This message was sent after the shooting, and when his roommate asked why, Robinson allegedly responded, “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.”
Charlie Kirk’s alleged assassin will be fighting the death penalty
This, along with Robinson’s mother telling investigators that her son had become “more political and had started to lean more to the left, becoming more pro-gay and trans rights oriented,” paints a picture of a politically motivated crime. In a separate text chat, Robinson also told his roommate that he had planned the shooting for “a bit over a week.”
Interestingly, the charging documents also reveal some bizarre details about the bullets used in the shooting. According to law enforcement, the ammunition was engraved with internet memes, including “If you read this, you are gay LMAO” and “Oh bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao,” a reference to an anti-fascist Italian song.
Utah County DA Jeff Gray is pushing to give Charlie Kirk’s assassin the death penalty.
— Steven Gorges (@GorgesSteven) September 17, 2025
Robinson seemed to acknowledge the strangeness of this in a text to his roommate, saying, “The f—in messages are mostly a big meme, if I see ‘notices bulge uwu’ on fox new I might have a stroke.” He also referenced a video game in an engraving, writing, “Hey fascist! Catch! ↑ → ↓↓↓.” This has led to a lot of speculation about a deeper political message, but Robinson’s text messages seem to suggest it was a form of trolling.
The charges come after a manhunt that ended with Robinson turning himself in. Prosecutors said that after his loved ones figured out he might be the killer, Robinson “implied that he planned to take his own life,” telling his parents he “couldn’t go to jail and just wanted to end it.” His parents were able to convince him to meet them, and they then went to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office to turn him in.
His mother had recognized him from a surveillance photo released by law enforcement. FBI Director Kash Patel, who has come under fire for his handling of the investigation, defended the agency’s timeline, stating that it was at his direction that they released the video and enhanced photos that led to Robinson’s father identifying him.
A strange twist in the case is the arrest of a different man, 71-year-old George Zinn, who was initially questioned in the aftermath of the shooting. He was arrested on unrelated charges, including obstruction of justice and sexual exploitation of a minor. Police say Zinn began yelling, “I shot him, now shoot me,” after the shooting and was arrested.
