Charlie Kirk’s widow and parents are expected this week in a Utah court where prosecutors seeking the death penalty will argue that the man charged with killing the conservative activist should stand trial for murder.

The five-day preliminary hearing that starts on Monday (July 6, 2026) will be the first time members of Kirk’s family are in the Utah courtroom with defendant Tyler Robinson. The hearing will be livestreamed.

Mr. Robinson turned himself in after the shooting. Prosecutors allege that he also sent a text message confession to his partner and left a note saying he had an opportunity to kill one of the nation’s leading conservative voices “and I’m going to take it.” He has not entered a plea in the case, however.

Mr. Robinson, 23, is charged with aggravated murder in the Sept. 10 assassination of Kirk, who was addressing a crowd of thousands at Utah Valley University. His attorneys have not commented on his guilt or innocence.

Months of legal jostling leading up to the hearing centered largely on media access. Beginning Monday (July 6, 2026), the focus shifts to whether there is enough evidence for a trial and if the death penalty is warranted, said Paul Cassell, a University of Utah law professor and former federal judge.

Mr. Cassell said evidence made public to date in court filings suggests prosecutors have “an overwhelming case.” “This seems like the proverbial slam dunk at this stage of the case, where the only issue is whether there is a sound basis for moving forward with a trial on the merits,” he said.

A death sentence is an option in Utah only when a crime has aggravating circumstances. Prosecutors will argue in Mr. Robinson’s case that Kirk’s shooting endangered others in attendance.

The proceeding will resemble a minitrial, with prosecutors planning to offer DNA evidence linking Mr. Robinson to the suspected murder weapon, testimony from investigators, autopsy findings, witness statements and video of Kirk’s killing. They are not required to present all their evidence and can use secondhand information, or hearsay.

After the hearing concludes, state District Judge Tony Graf must determine if the case should proceed.

Reporters and the public will be allowed to attend after Graf denied a defense request to restrict access.

Kirk’s killing drew backlash from his Republican allies, including President Donald Trump, who first announced Mr. Robinson’s arrest in a Sept. 12 interview on Fox News and said, “I hope he gets the death penalty.” This week prosecutors need only demonstrate that there are reasonable grounds to believe Robinson killed Kirk. The standard is lower than for a trial, where prosecutors have to prove guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt.” Authorities have said DNA consistent with Mr. Robinson’s was found on the trigger of the rifle used to kill Kirk, the fired cartridge casing, two unfired cartridges and a towel used to wrap the rifle.

Mr. Robinson’s parents had confronted him after authorities released a surveillance photo of the suspect and details about the rifle, authorities have said. His parents convinced him to meet with a family friend, who is a retired sheriff’s deputy, who reportedly helped arrange for Mr. Robinson to turn himself in.

Prosecutors have said Mr. Robinson left a note for his roommate, who was also his romantic partner, that read, “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it.” They also said he wrote to his roommate in a text message about Kirk: “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.” Defense attorneys unsuccessfully sought to block prosecutors from using recorded statements from Mr. Robinson’s roommate during the hearing. The defense wanted the roommate to testify in person so Mr. Robinson could exercise his right challenge the credibility of witnesses against him. Graf said the time for challenging witnesses would come later.

Before his death, Kirk and the organization he co-founded, Turning Point USA, galvanized the conservative youth vote to help Trump win a second term.

His widow, Erika Kirk, who took the helm of the organization after his death, pushed to maintain public access to Robinson’s prosecution when defense attorneys sought to exclude cameras from the courtroom. She forgave Mr. Robinson during her husband’s memorial service.

She is expected in court throughout the week with her husband’s parents, Robert and Kathryn Kirk, according to a person familiar with the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

The man arrested in the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk is not cooperating with authorities, but investigators are working to establish a motive for the shooting by talking to his friends and family, Utah Governor Spencer Cox said on Sunday (September 14, 2025).

Mr. Cox said the accused gunman, Tyler Robinson (22), would be formally charged on Tuesday (September 16, 2025). He remains in custody in Utah.

Investigators have yet to piece together why Robinson allegedly scaled a rooftop at Utah Valley University during an outdoor event and shot Kirk in the neck at long range on Wednesday (September 10, 2025).

Kirk, a staunch ally of President Donald Trump and co-founder of the conservative student group Turning Point USA, was killed by a single rifle shot during the event attended by 3,000 people in Orem, about 40 miles south (65 km) of Salt Lake City. The killing ushered in newfound fears of a spike in political violence in the United States and an ever-deepening divide between the left and the right.

Robinson has not confessed to investigators, Mr. Cox told in the ABC program “This Week”.

“He is not cooperating, but all the people around him were cooperating, and I think that’s very important,” the Republican Governor said.

Investigators found messages engraved into four bullet casings, which included references to memes and video game in-jokes. An affidavit filed by authorities in the case described these messages.

Robinson, a third-year student in the electrical apprenticeship programme at Dixie Technical College, part of Utah’s public university system, was taken into custody at his parents’ house, about 260 miles (420 km) southwest of the crime scene, after a 33-hour manhunt.

Relatives and a family friend alerted authorities that he had implicated himself in the crime, Mr. Cox said previously.

A memorial event for Kirk will be held on September 21 in Glendale, Arizona, his organisation said.