4 hours ago
Suspect in Charlie Kirk killing charged with aggravated murder and weapon and obstruction offenses
Gray announced he is filing charges on these counts:
1. aggravated murder
2. felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury
3. obstruction of justice for moving and concealing the rifle used in the shooting
4. obstruction of justice for disposing the clothing he wore during the shooting
5. witness tampering for directing his roommate to delete his incriminating text
6. witness tampering for directing his roommate to stay silent if police questioned him
7. commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child
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The New York Times reports that in the charging documents prosecutors reproduced a text exchange that Tyler Robinson had with his roommate and romantic partner shortly after the shooting, in which Robinson admits to the assassination, they say.
“I had enough of his hatred,” Robinson texted, referring to Charlie Kirk. “Some hate can’t be negotiated out.”
Gray talks through the surveillance and physical evidence collected at Utah Valley University after Kirk’s shooting, including video evidence of a suspect running across campus and impressions in the gravel consistent with a sniper on the roof where the shots originated from.
There is now a feed at the top of the blog if you’d like to follow the briefing.
DNA “consistent with” Robinson was found on the trigger of the bolt-action rifle believed to have been used in the shooting of Charlie Kirk, Gray says.
After allegedly shooting Kirk, Robinson hid the gun, discarded his clothing and told his roommate to delete incriminating text messages and not talk to police, Gray says. Children were present at the event where Kirk was fatally shot, he adds.
Utah to seek death penalty in Kirk shooting case
Gray also confirms that he will be seeking the death penalty.
“I do not take this decision lightly, and it is a decision I have made independently,” Gray says.
As a result, the defendant will continue to be held without bail in the Utah county jail.
Suspect in Charlie Kirk killing charged with aggravated murder and weapon and obstruction offenses
Gray announced he is filing charges on these counts:
1. aggravated murder
2. felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury
3. obstruction of justice for moving and concealing the rifle used in the shooting
4. obstruction of justice for disposing the clothing he wore during the shooting
5. witness tampering for directing his roommate to delete his incriminating text
6. witness tampering for directing his roommate to stay silent if police questioned him
7. commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child
The Utah county attorney Jeff Gray is now holding a press conference to explain charges and the next steps in the case of Tyler Robinson suspected of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk.
I’ll bring you all the key developments here.
Summary: Kash Patel grilled by Senate committee
FBI director Kash Patel’s testimony before the Senate judiciary committee has finally wrapped after more than four hours.
The appearance twice exploded into a shouting match between Kash Patel and Democratic senator Cory Booker and later Adam Schiff. Patel defended his leadership of the FBI, denying that he has politicized the agency and ordered firings of agents and personnel over their work on cases related to Donald Trump or the January 6 attack on the US Capitol. “No one at the FBI is terminated for case assignments alone,” Patel said, in careful wording picked apart by Democrats.
He also defended his actions over prematurely posting on social media that the suspect in Charlie Kirk’s killing had been found, only for that person to be released. Democratic senator Dick Durbin and others said Patel’s actions pointed to his lack of experience and “sparked mass confusion” during the investigation.
Schiff-Patel exchange turns fiery in second shouting match of hearing
Schiff then challenges Patel over the administration’s handling of questions related to Jeffrey Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.
In particular, Schiff expresses outrage at Patel’s claim he had no knowledge of why Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year sex-trafficking sentence related to the Epstein investigation, was moved to a minimum-security facility after speaking with deputy attorney general Todd Blanche.
“You are the biggest fraud to ever sit in the United States Senate,” Patel yells. “You are disgrace to this institution and an utter coward.”
Grassley bangs his gavel to try to restore order as the two continue arguing.
“You are a political buffoon, at best,” Patel tells Schiff.
“You can make an internet troll the FBI director, but will always be nothing more than an internet troll,” Schiff tries to yell over him.
Durbin urges Grassley to take control of the hearing, prompting Grassley to bang his gavel and say: “Both of you, be quiet.”
Patel insists FBI employees weren't terminated 'for case assignments alone'
Democratic senator Adam Schiff asks Patel again whether FBI employees were fired for political retribution.
“Are you testifying today that you never terminated anyone at the FBI in whole or in part because of a prior case assignment?” Schiff asks.
Patel says: “No one at the FBI is terminated for case assignments alone.”
Schiff highlights that Patel used the word alone. “Mr Patel, did you in whole or in part terminate anyone at the FBI because they worked on the Trump investigation, or because they worked on January 6?”
Patel repeats: “No one at the FBI has been terminated for case assignments alone.”
Schiff asks: “Does that mean they were terminated in part because they were assigned to a January 6 case, or assigned to the Mar-a-Lago case? You’re being very precise here, Mr Patel, you’re saying alone. That means they were fired in part because they were assigned those cases. Is that your testimony?”
“Absolutely not,” Patel said.
Utah to file formal charges against Kirk shooting suspect
Attention will switch to Utah shortly, where county attorney Jeff Gray is due to file formal charges against Charlie Kirk’s suspected killer Tyler Robinson at 2pm ET.
Gray will hold a news conference in around 30 minutes, where we should learn much more about the suspect and the case laid against him.
Robinson is then due to appear in court for the first time – via video link – at 5pm ET.
Patel defends social media post about Kirk subject in custody
Patel posted in the hours after the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk that “the subject” was in custody even though the actual suspect was still at large.
“I don’t see it as a mistake. I see it as something - working with the public to identify that there was a subject in custody,” Patel told senators.
He said he wanted to inform the public that a subject had been taken into custody, even though that person did not end up being the suspect in the shooting.
Could I have been more careful in my verbiage and said we had a subject instead of the subject? Sure.
Democratic senator Peter Welch pushed back, saying it caused confusion by making it sound like authorities had caught the person suspected of killing Kirk.
Patel shot back: “That’s not what I said.”
US must ‘turn the tide’ against political violence and reject vengeance, says Pennsylvania governor
Pennsylvania’s governor Josh Shapiro has said the US must “turn the tide” against political violence and the belief that government can’t solve problems while also rejecting vengeance, the AP reports.
Shapiro, a Democrat, delivered the remarks at the Eradicate Hate Global Summit in Pittsburgh. Shapiro said leaders must condemn all forms of political violence and shouldn’t use violence as a pretext for more violence or to prosecute constitutionally protected speech.
Shapiro also criticized Donald Trump, saying some people “in the dark corners of the internet, all the way to the Oval Office, want to cherry-pick which instances of political violence they want to condemn”.
Trump and his allies have come under fire for blaming political violence squarely on the left, condemning violent acts committed against Republicans, and ignoring acts of violence against Democrats.
In April, Shapiro and his family fled the governor’s official residence in the middle of the night after an alleged arsonist set it on fire in an attempt to kill Shapiro.
Cruz urges Patel to “follow the money”, suggesting – as Trump has many times – that political violence is being funded and promoted by certain individuals/organizations.
Patel says: “We’ve been following the money, issuing lawful process to organizations involved in criminal activity, because the money has to come from somewhere and it has to be funded somehow.
“So we have extensive investigations into numerous organizations that are related to violent criminal activity.”
Weighing in on the controversy surrounding people posting comments critical of Charlie Kirk on social media since his killing, Republican senator Ted Cruz encourages the FBI to “focus on conduct”.
“Under our Constitution, under the Bill of Rights, the First Amendment, speech is protected, and that’s true even for vile speech,” Cruz says. “Someone can stand up and say the most hateful thing, and it’s protected by the First Amendment.”
He continues: “Speech can guide you to those engaged in conduct.”
Booker-Patel exchange descends into shouting match
Booker says Trump promised to make the country safer, but says Patel’s actions at the FBI have led to the opposite.
“You have pushed out senior FBI agents with decades of knowledge and experience,” Booker says. “In fact, this is the first time in FBI history that neither the director nor the deputy director have any experience with the FBI. You’ve shifted the agency’s priorities primarily to pursuing Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda.
“I believe you have made our country weaker and less safe,” Booker says, “by gutting the agency of knowledge and expertise” and having agents “do low-level immigration enforcement instead of their mission-critical work”.
“You don’t get to say that America is not safer under this leadership,” Patel says. “America is safer because of the FBI.”
Booker says he believes the US is more vulnerable to a domestic or foreign attack because of Patel’s “failing as a leader”.
In just eight months you have assaulted the institutional integrity of the FBI.
He then predicts that Patel won’t hold the job as director for much longer.
Here’s the thing, Mr Patel, I think you’re not going to be around long ... I think this might be your last oversight hearing.
“Sir, that rant of false information does not bring this country together,” Patel responds.
The exchange then descends into a yelling match, with Chuck Grassley having to pound his gavel to struggle to contain them, bringing the questioning to a halt.
Booker asks if Patel discussed the matter with White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller.
Patel says: “Not that I recall.”
Booker asks Patel under what authority he terminated former acting FBI director Brian Driscoll, who is suing Patel for alleged wrongful termination.
Patel says he can’t discuss the matter as it’s under litigation.
