Judge Declines Defense's Creative Attempt to Make the Death Penalty Magically Disappear On the Charlie Kirk Shooting

Defense attorneys apparently hoped that if they complained loudly enough about a prosecutor's media comments, the potential death penalty would simply vanish. A Utah judge wasn't buying it.

The alleged assassin of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, a scumcrumpet named Tyler Robinson, remains eligible for the death penalty if convicted of aggravated murder after Judge Tony Graf Jr. rejected what amounted to the legal equivalent of asking for a do-over because the other side said something impolite.

The judge found Deputy Utah County Attorney Christopher Ballard in civil contempt for crossing the line during media interviews. Ballard improperly expressed confidence in the overall strength of the case against Robinson, violating a court order limiting public comments, proving he's not the brightest nor the best of attorneys.

That did not mean the prosecution should lose its ability to seek capital punishment, it just means Ballard needs to keep his mouth shut when he's supposed to.

"The court finds that striking the death penalty is grossly disproportionate to the misconduct and legally unavailable in this civil contempt framework," Graf ruled.

Translation: Nice try.

Robinson is accused of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk during a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University in September 2025. According to prosecutors, the evidence goes well beyond a single bullet fragment, despite defense efforts to suggest otherwise.

The dispute centered on forensic evidence involving Robinson's grandfather's rifle. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives determined that the bullet fragment recovered from Kirk could neither definitively identify nor eliminate the rifle as the source because the tool mark analysis was inconclusive. Defense attorneys eagerly promoted that finding as though it were an exoneration.

Not so fast.

The bullet caliber matched the rifle, and investigators also matched a spent shell casing to the weapon. Prosecutors argued they were merely correcting a misleading narrative after headlines falsely implied the firearm had been ruled out altogether.

Judge Graf largely agreed that prosecutors were allowed to "set the record straight." Where Ballard got into trouble was adding his own opinion about Robinson's guilt instead of simply correcting the record.

Rather than imposing the judicial equivalent of a lightning strike on the prosecution, Graf ordered an expanded jury selection process to ensure prospective jurors can remain impartial.

The courtroom battle has increasingly resembled a public relations war. Prosecutors accuse the defense of planting misleading claims through carefully crafted court filings designed to generate favorable headlines. The defense, in turn, accuses prosecutors of "hubris" for responding publicly.

Everyone seems eager to litigate the case on cable news before it reaches a jury.

Robinson has not yet entered a plea and is expected to do so only after his preliminary hearing, which is scheduled for early July. He will continue appearing remotely from jail while both sides keep arguing over microphones almost as much as they argue in the courtroom.

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Latest in Charlie Kirk Assassination Trial

The Utah judge overseeing the assassination case of conservative activist Charlie Kirk has yet to rule on the defense's motion to disqualify the Utah County Attorney’s Office from prosecuting the case over an alleged conflict of interest.

The defense team for the scumwafer, whose name will not be used here, has been charged with the murder of Kirk, the 31-year-old husband and father of two, on September 10 at Utah Valley University, says the office has a conflict of interest in the case due to a Utah County prosecutor's daughter being present at Utah Valley University when the assassination took place.

The prosecution says the family member saw nothing direct and a conflict of interest has not been established. They’ve also accused the defense of stall tactics.

Judge Tony Graf said on Friday that there's not sufficient evidence yet to warrant the expulsion of the office, but has allowed the defendant's team to begin examining witnesses in relation to the supposed conflict of interest.

Additionally, Judge Graf blocked a pool video camera from showing the defendant after his defense team complained that shots of the accused speaking with his legal team could potentially be seen by lip readers and unfairly impact the trial.

A court “decorum” order prohibits visual recordings of conversations at the defense table, even if they're inaudible, that could potentially be deciphered by lip readers. It also bars close-ups of written communications. The defense argued that the video feed photographer violated such a provision twice on Friday, NewsNation reported.

The sanction of the pool video camera pertained to Friday's hearing specifically, and is not permanent. The next hearing is scheduled for February 3, and will focus on the defense’s requests to boot the Utah County Attorney's Office from the case and limit video footage in the trial.

Separately, new reporting on Lance Twiggs, Robinson's roommate and alleged lover, indicates that Twiggs is no longer being protected by federal agents.

Twiggs, who lived with Robinson at the time of Kirk's murder, has been linked to text messages about the assassination. Relatives of Twiggs say the 22-year-old identified as transgender and was "transitioning" to female.

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Twiggs had an FBI security detail due to threats before he moved out of state, according to media reports. He has not been charged with any crime in connection to the assassination.

This case continues to highlight the raw tensions in our divided nation, folks. Stay tuned for developments.

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Nexstar’s Still Shunning Kimmel’s Smirkfest, Even After Disney’s All-Clear

Well, folks, the late-night clown car is back, but not everyone's ready to buy a ticket to the circus. 

Nexstar Media Group, which runs 32 ABC affiliate stations, is keeping Jimmy Kimmel Live! on the bench, despite Disney cowardly waving the green flag for its return. You'd think a corporate giant like Disney could strong-arm everyone into compliance, but Nexstar's not budging, not yet, anyway. And honestly, it's refreshing to see someone stand their ground against the Hollywood sanctimony machine.

Nexstar dropped the hammer in a statement Tuesday, saying, "We made a decision last week to preempt 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' following what ABC referred to as Mr. Kimmel's 'ill-timed and insensitive' comments at a critical time in our national discourse. We stand by that decision pending assurance that all parties are committed to fostering an environment of respectful, constructive dialogue in the markets we serve." 

So, Kimmel's mouth got him in trouble, and we're not here for it until he learns to play nice. They added that Kimmel's show can still be streamed on Disney's platforms, while their stations will stick to local news and programming that actually matters to their viewers. Smart move, less sanctimonious snark, more real-world relevance.

Sinclair Broadcast Group, which controls 30 ABC affiliates, is also keeping Kimmel's smug mug off their airwaves. Their statement was equally no-nonsense: "Beginning Tuesday night, Sinclair will be preempting 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' across our ABC affiliate stations and replacing it with news programming. Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show's potential return." Sounds like they aren't holding their breath for Kimmel to suddenly become a beacon of civility.

This whole clusterfrack kicked off when Kimmel, in his infinite wisdom, decided to weigh in on the tragic assassination of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University on September 10. Kirk, a 31-year-old father of two little girls, was fatally shot in the neck by 22-year-old Tyler Robinson during a college event.

Robinson, reportedly linked to a gender confused partner, allegedly confessed via text messages, according to the FBI. Kimmel, never one to let facts get in the way of a good narrative, went on a rant last Monday, accusing conservatives of hitting "new lows" by trying to "characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it." 

Classy, Jimmy. Nothing says "thoughtful discourse" like baselessly smearing a grieving conservative base while a family buries their loved one. It is definitely time for conservatives to consider boycotting his sponsors now that he's going back on air.

The backlash was swift. Disney yanked Kimmel's show last Wednesday after Nexstar and Sinclair pulled it from their stations, and even the FCC's Brendan Carr called Kimmel's remarks "some of the sickest conduct," hinting at potential consequences. Kimmel, doubling down like a true Tinseltown titan, reportedly told execs he wouldn’t apologize. The left cried "free speech!" while conservatives pointed out that falsely tying Kirk's killer to MAGA wasn’t free speech; it was reckless defamation.

Disney announced Monday that Kimmel, [who is also known for his blackface when he did a Karl Malone imitation] is back on ABC Tuesday night, is likely to address the controversy with his trademark smirk and zero self-awareness. 

Kimmel doing blackface

But Nexstar and Sinclair aren't going along with their crap, and good for them. 

Nexstar, the biggest local TV broadcasting group in the U.S., reaches 220 million people across 116 markets. They're not some small-time operation, they have real clout, and they're using it. Just last month, they inked a $6.2 billion deal to acquire Tegna, which will expand their reach and boost political ad revenue in key election markets like Phoenix and Atlanta. That deal is still pending FCC approval, but it shows Nexstar's focused on real priorities, not Kimmel's ego trip.

Clay Travis, the OutKick founder, weighed in on The Will Cain Show, and you can bet he didn't mince words about ABC's handling of this fiasco. Kimmel's return might thrill the blue-check crowd, but with Nexstar and Sinclair holding firm, it's clear not everyone is ready to forgive and forget. Maybe Jimmy should take a cue from the affiliates and focus on "respectful, constructive dialogue" instead of cheap shots. 

But hey, I'm not holding my breath.

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Actress Amanda Seyfried moonwalks in reverse after condemning Charlie Kirk

Leave it to Hollywood to step in it and then try to wipe it away with a press release. Actress Amanda Seyfried, best known for her role in the 2004 teen flick Mean Girls and soon to grace screens in The Housemaid, found herself in hot water after comments about murdered conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Now she's scrambling to clarify, claiming her words were "taken out of context." 

Aren't they all when leftists are held accountable?

Kirk, the co-founder of Turning Point USA, was gunned down on September 10 at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. He  leaves behind a wife and two young daughters. 

While conservatives and even some liberals hailed him as a free-speech warrior, others, apparently including Seyfried, seemed to think his rhetoric was an open invitation to violence. Screenshots making the rounds online show her calling Kirk "hateful" on Instagram and sharing a post that snarked, "You can’t invite violence to the dinner table and be shocked when it starts eating." Ouch.

Cue the backlash, and Seyfried's now singing a different tune. In a public post, she tried to thread the needle: "We’re forgetting the nuance of humanity. I can get angry about misogyny and racist rhetoric and ALSO very much agree that Charlie Kirk’s murder was absolutely disturbing and deplorable in every way imaginable." She went on, "No one should have to experience this level of violence. This country is grieving too many senseless and violent deaths and shootings. Can we agree on that at least?"

In her caption, she played the victim card: "I don’t want to add fuel to a fire. I just want to be able to give clarity to something so irresponsibly (but understandably) taken out of context. Spirited discourse- isn’t that what we should be having?" Spirited discourse, huh? Funny how that only becomes the goal after you've been called out.

Meanwhile, at Utah Valley University, where Kirk was killed, locals and students paid their respects at a memorial on September 15, 2025, showing the kind of class Seyfried might want to take notes on. Her attempt at damage control might convince her Hollywood pals, but on X, where the screenshots don't lie, the jury is still out on whether this was a genuine clarification or just a celebrity dodging accountability.

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