Prosecutors in US lay out case against alleged killer of Charlie Kirk

Judge to decide if prosecutors have enough evidence to bring Tyler Robinson to trial for conservative activist killing.Prosecutors in the US state of Utah have begun presenting evidence in the case against the alleged killer of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.Following the preliminary hearing, which began on Monday and is due to continue for five days, prosecutors will seek to convince a state judge that they have enough evidence to bring shooting suspect Tyler Robinson to trial for the killing of Kirk last September.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Is JD Vance right in blaming left for political violence in the US?list 2 of 3US revokes visa of music executive for Charlie Kirk tweetlist 3 of 3Turning Point USA held its AmericaFest conference. Here’s what happenedend of listWhile only the initial proceedings, the hearing had the trappings of a full trial, with both defendant Robinson, Charlie Kirk’s wife, Erica Kirk, and his parents in the courthouse. Also in court were Donald Trump Jr, the son of US President Donald Trump, and far-right activist Jack Posobiec.Robinson has not entered a plea and his attorneys have not commented on his guilt or innocence. The defence has, however, sought to remove the possibility of the death penalty for Robinson, but has so far been unsuccessful. Trump has called for Robinson to face the death penalty.For the full trial to proceed, prosecutors must convince the judge there are reasonable grounds to believe Robinson killed Kirk. For an eventual conviction, they will have to convince a jury that Robinson is guilty “beyond a reasonable doubt”.Robinson sat between his attorneys during the first day of the hearing, occasionally taking notes, his wrists shackled to a chain around his waist.The prosecution first called Utah-valley-university" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="3139" data-entity-type="location">Utah Valley University police officer Chris Bagley as a witness. He recounted Kirk speaking to a large crowd on campus when he was shot.He recounted going to the top of a nearby building, where he saw indentations in gravel he described as an apparent “sniper pad”.