Charlie Kirk murder: Prosecutors show video of suspect Tyler Robinson on campus on day of shooting

The week-long preliminary hearing for the Utah man charged in the killing of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk continues today  as prosecutors present the evidence they have against Tyler Robinson. 

Prosecutors show never-before-seen security video of Tyler Robinson on the Utah Valley University campus on Sept. 10  

On Tuesday, prosecutors showed in court never-before-seen security video of Tyler Robinson on the Utah Valley University campus on Sept. 10, the day he's accused of shooting and killing Charlie Kirk.

CCTV footage from the Utah Valley University campus captured Robinson's movements from the moment he arrived on campus through his alleged shooting of Kirk, and continued tracking him afterward.

The video released by prosecutors allegedly shows Robinson on the top of the Losee Center for Student Success, where he's accused of assassinating Kirk.

Utah Valley University CCTV also captured the car being driven by Robinson leaving campus after the shooting.

Big picture view:

The hearing is set to last five days as prosecutors seek the death penalty for Tyler Robinson, and Monday marked the most significant presentation of the evidence against the Utah man. The first day of the week-long preliminary hearing brought no major revelations.

Kirk’s parents, Kathryn and Robert, and his widow, Erika, attended the first day of the hearing and came face to face with his accused assassin for the first time.  

Robinson was already in the room before members of the media were allowed in at around 8:55 a.m. He was wearing a gray suit, pink shirt and black tie, with his wrists and ankles cuffed. Later in the hearing, when videos of Kirk's shooting death were played for the sides and the judge, he showed no visible response when the sound of the fatal gunshot rang out.

The backstory:

Robinson, who faces charges of aggravated murder, has not entered a plea. His attorneys have not commented on his guilt or innocence, but they have moved to get the death penalty taken off the table.

Prosecutors have described some of the evidence they expect to present during the week, including DNA results linking Robinson to the suspected murder weapon. They also plan to show autopsy findings, witness statements, and video of Kirk’s killing. 

They also intend to argue that the shooting endangered other people attending the event at Utah Valley University where Kirk was shot. That factor would represent the aggravating circumstance that would make it a crime punishable by death in Utah.

During Monday’s hearing, former campus police officer Christopher Bagley told the court that he went to a gravel rooftop soon after the September 10 shooting and could see indications that someone had been lying prone with a clear sightline to where Kirk was speaking to thousands of people.

"It looks like a sniper pad," Bagley said, adding, "You’ve got markings of elbows, knees and feet."

District Judge Tony Graf was shown several videos from the day Kirk was killed as attorneys from both sides shielded monitors following Graf's decision not to publicize the photographs because of their graphic nature. 

When questioned by prosecutors, Utah State Bureau of Investigation Agent David Hull described the contents of the clips. 

He said that they showed the crowd milling around the event and Kirk interacting with some of the spectators. The videos also contained the moments when Kirk was shot, as well as the hectic scene that followed, with security personnel taking him away while administering first aid.

Dig deeper:

While the preliminary hearing may look like a trial, the bar for prosecutors at this stage is much lower. They must show the judge that there are reasonable grounds to believe that Robinson killed Kirk for the case to go to trial. At that point, prosecutors would have to prove Robinson is guilty "beyond a reasonable doubt."

A former prosecutor and state judge in Salt Lake City, Mark Kouris, believes that means the state should have little trouble getting its case to trial, saying, "This standard is extremely low and the chances of them not getting through it are, quite frankly, almost nothing."