If your legal defense strategy is built on reasonable doubt, it probably helps if the prosecution does not have security cameras tracking your every move across an entire college campus. Tyler Robinson's attorneys are learning that lesson the hard way.
Prosecutors on Tuesday presented never before seen CCTV footage during the second day of Robinson's preliminary hearing in Provo, Utah, as Trending Politics reported. The footage allegedly tracks Robinson, 23, across the Utah Valley University campus on Sept. 10, the day Charlie Kirk was assassinated during a Turning Point USA event. We are talking from arrival to rooftop to getaway car. The full tour.
The video allegedly shows Robinson on top of the Losee Center for Student Success, which is the building where authorities say the fatal shot was fired. It also allegedly captures a car driven by Robinson leaving campus after the shooting. So if you are keeping score at home, prosecutors say they have him arriving, climbing to the roof, being on the roof at the time of the shot, and then driving away. That is not a great sequence of events for the defense table.
Conservative commentator Liz Wheeler shared the footage on social media, writing: "This video is incredibly damning. Watch Tyler Robinson visit UVU campus four times on 9/10. Watch him 'limp' with the rifle in his pants. Watch him climb stairs to the roof, jump a guardrail, lie prone on the corner, then run as soon as the shot was fired."
The video evidence came after a small win for the defense on day one. Robinson's attorneys successfully objected to an edited prosecution video that included face blurs, zooms, and red circles. Judge Tony Graf Jr. sustained the objection, ruling it had not been properly authenticated. Prosecutors said they would provide an unedited version. So the defense won the battle of "you cannot draw red circles on things" and then lost the war of "here is entirely different footage showing basically the same stuff."
Utah State Bureau of Investigation Agent David Hull testified Monday that investigators relied heavily on surveillance footage to piece together the suspect's movements. Graphic footage of Kirk's fatal shooting was shown to the judge and attorneys but not displayed publicly in court. Reporters could hear the audio of the gunshot. Graf visibly recoiled when the shot rang out. Robinson reportedly showed no obvious reaction, which is the kind of detail that does not play well in front of a judge.
Robinson has not entered a plea. He faces aggravated murder and other felony charges and could receive the death penalty if convicted of the top charge. Prosecutors are also expected to present a recorded statement from Robinson's former roommate and romantic partner, Lance Twiggs. Authorities have alleged that Twiggs received a written confession from Robinson after the shooting.
Kirk's widow and parents attended the opening day of the hearing, along with Donald Trump Jr., Jack Posobiec, and Brandon Tatum. The preliminary hearing is expected to last all week, and based on how the first two days have gone, it is going to be a very long week for the defense.
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