By Andrew Hay
Feb 24 (Reuters) - A Utah judge is expected to rule on Tuesday on whether to disqualify prosecutors from the trial of the man accused of assassinating conservative activist Charlie Kirk because a daughter of a senior prosecutor witnessed the killing.
This month, District Court Judge Tony Graf held a hearing on the challenge by defense lawyers for Tyler Robinson, who contend that prosecutors from the Utah County Attorney's Office should be disqualified from the case.
Robinson's defense attorneys noted that the 18-year-old daughter of a senior prosecutor witnessed the September 10 murder. They said the prosecutors' decision to seek the death penalty less than a week later showed a "strong emotional reaction" from Chad Grunander, a deputy attorney whose daughter alerted him to the murder in a string of text messages.
Grunander testified that his daughter's presence at the shooting did not play any role in his office's move to seek the death penalty. He said the decision was made after he and other prosecutors decided they had sufficient evidence against Robinson.
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"We felt there's simply no conflict here," Grunander told the Provo, Utah, court during a February 3 hearing.
There has been no discussion in court or filings of who would prosecute the case if the judge rules to disqualify Grunander's team. Defense lawyers have previously requested that the Utah state attorney general's office answer their conflict of interest allegations, not the Utah County Attorney's Office.
Robinson, 22, was studying to be an electrician. He is accused of firing a single round from a rooftop that struck down Kirk as he debated students at Utah Valley University in Orem during a tour of U.S. colleges.
Kirk was credited with mobilizing young voters who helped President Donald Trump win the 2024 election. His assassination on stage in front of hundreds of onlookers was a stunning public display of mounting political violence in the U.S.
Robinson is charged with aggravated murder, witness tampering and obstruction of justice. He will not enter a plea until after a preliminary hearing, tentatively scheduled for mid-May.
(Reporting by Andrew Hay in Taos, New Mexico; editing by Donna Bryson and David Gregorio)