“At certain points throughout the preliminary hearing, the Kirk family sat in the room while evidence was admitted but not presented for their viewing.”
In a court filing late Wednesday, the attorney representing Erika Kirk and the family of Charlie Kirk has criticized the transparency in the ongoing preliminary hearing of Tyler Robinson, who has been charged with the Turning Point USA founder’s killing. Kirk was shot and killed in September 2025 while speaking at Utah Valley University. During the preliminary hearing, Judge Tony Graf has permitted defense motions to prevent some evidence from being seen in open court over fair trial concerns.
Jeffrey Neiman, who is representing Erika Kirk who is the court designated victim, wrote, "For ten months, the Victim’s Family has waited for this preliminary hearing. Erika Kirk, the widow of Charlie Kirk, and his grieving parents traveled to this courtroom for one reason: to be present at these proceedings and to bear witness to the evidence concerning the death of their husband and son. At certain points throughout the preliminary hearing, the Kirk family sat in the room while evidence was admitted but not presented for their viewing. They were present in body, yet denied the very thing their presence was meant to secure: their ability to meaningfully observe the preliminary hearing."
Neiman said the position of the victim’s family "is simple": "At a minimum, every exhibit entered into evidence during the preliminary hearing must be visible to every person lawfully present in the courtroom. To receive evidence in a manner shielded from those seated in the courtroom—as happened today—is not transparency. And in the absence of transparency, speculation and conspiracy theories related to the tragic assassination of Mr. Kirk will continue to proliferate in the public domain, breeding doubt and distrust in the judicial system. This is not what anyone should want."
The filing came after extended arguments on day three of the preliminary hearing regarding a video of testimony from Lance Twiggs, Robinson’s transgender lover. The state sought to admit it and have at least audio played, allowing cameras to capture it, while the defense sought to have portions of the video redacted. Judge Tony Graf ultimately ruled that around 17 minutes of the audio could not be played in the courtroom and should be redacted. The defense offered concerns that in the recorded video testimony, Twiggs was being "led" by the interviewing investigator.
Neiman noted in the filing that "Utah law affords crime victims and their lawful representatives independent rights in criminal proceedings," including the right "to be informed of, be present at, and to be heard at important criminal justice hearings related to the victim, either in person or through a lawful representative."
"The right “to be present” is hollow if the victim or his representative is physically in the room but is prevented from seeing the evidence the Court is receiving. A right to attend that does not include the ability to perceive what is happening is not meaningful presence at all."
Neiman said that Erika Kirk, on behalf of the victim’s family, requests that the court order all exhibits that have been used in the preceeding days of the preliminary hearing but not published to the courtroom be published during Thursday’s hearing, that all exhibits admitted into evidence going forward be openly shown in the courtroom, and that "no evidence be received by the Court in a manner that conceals it from those lawfully present in the courtroom."
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