CHARLIE Kirk suspect Tyler Robinson could face execution by firing squad – but lawyers haved warned the legal process will likely drag on for YEARS.
It comes after President Donald Trump has repeatedly called for “quick trials” to turbo charge the American’s justice system after the both the assassination of Kirk and murder of Iryna Zarutska.
Charlie Kirk speaks before he is shot during Turning Point’s visit to Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah[/caption]
Tyler Robinson is the main suspect and is now in police custody in Utah after being arrested on Friday[/caption]
Texas criminal defense attorney Sam Bassett explained to The U.S. Sun how the legal process will now play out in the case which has shocked the world[/caption]
Robinson, 22, is now in custody after a dramatic Utah manhunt resulted in his arrest in connection with the shocking murder of the popular right-wing activist on Wednesday.
He has been charged with aggravated murder – and the President has called on him to receive the death penalty.
Cops say the former Utah student confessed to his dad that he shot dead Trump ally Kirk in front of a horrified crowd on Wednesday.
Should Robinson be handed down the death penalty, Utah is one of the states that allows the use of a firing squad.
They are only one of three states to have used it for capital punishment for criminals.
And they had been set to execute death row murderer Ralph Menzies in a hail of bullets before the Supreme Court overturned the move.
The first firing squad execution in the US for 15 years – with the last being done in Utah – was carried out in South Carolina back in April as the Trump adminstration seeks to expand the use of executions.
But despite Trump’s enthusiasm for swift and brutal justice, top lawyers have warned the process could still take years and be marred in legal argument and challenges.
Speaking on Fox & Friends yesterday as he announced Robinson’s arrest – Trump again doubled down, saying he wanted justice dished out swiftly like it is in China.
And he made similar comments when posting on social media about the killer of Ukrainian refugee Iryna who was butchered on a train in Charlotte – demanding a “quick trial”.
Speaking exclusively to The U.S. Sun, seasoned Austin-based criminal defense attorney Sam Bassett stressed that if that situation transpires, the legal process could take five years to complete.
Bassett acknowledges that even if Robinson’s case is taken from a state to federal level — which is highly possible considering the politically volatile nature of the incident allied with President Trump’s fury at the murder of his close confidant — legal arguments and procedure won’t be fast to resolve.
“I’d be surprised if the case is tried in 2026,” the legal expert said. “Even without the death penalty element and the charge was life without parole, it would still involve a couple of years of work. The realistic timeline between now and a possible execution could be at least three to five years.”
LENGTHY PROCESS
The lawyer stressed that if Robinson, who is from Washington Utah, 240 miles from the scene of the crime, stands trial there could be “numerous appeals” which will delay proceedings further, with the U.S. Supreme Court then becoming involved.
At a press conference on Friday to announce the capture of Robinson, officials said the criminal investigation into the murder of Kirk, a father of two, had started and the legal process is underway.
Barrett, who has defended clients facing similar charges in the past, says the death penalty element in this case will lengthen the timeline considerably.
Arguments for the defense and prosecution would be far from straightforward, said the Texas-based lawmaker, with the Department of Justice also becoming heavily involved in what would be a powder keg, high-profile trial.
There could also be a scenario where Utah officials are perhaps unwilling or unable to seek the death penalty.
Florida attorney Chad Cummings, however, pointed out to The U.S. Sun that in the case of Luigi Mangione, who has been accused of gunning down United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan last December, despite an initial state prosecution, the federal government has since intervened.
Iryna Zarutska’s murder has also inspired Trump’s recent calls for ‘quick trials’[/caption]
He also stressed that the arguments presented by Robinson’s defense team will be lengthy and complex.
“Common mitigation themes include childhood trauma, brain damage, and severe mental illness,” he explained. “Expert neuropsychological and psychiatric testimony often becomes the battleground, with both sides introducing MRI scans, ACE scores, and developmental history.”
While a decision to put the alleged killer behind bars for life could be taken in a matter of months, deliberations over having Robinson suffer the ultimate price for his alleged crimes could drag for years.
Numerous lawyers will have to be retained, along with experts to assist with the defense and prosecution.
“If you classify a case as a death penalty case, a lot of special procedures come in to play that take a lot of time,” the attorney continued.
“In a state prosecution, it is very common for a capital case to take two or three years to be resolved.”
FBI footage showed Robinson running from the scene of the crime[/caption]
Security lapse at Charlie Kirk’s Utah rally
Kenneth Gray, criminal justice lecturer at University of New Haven and a retired FBI agent, spoke to The U.S. Sun about the security flaw at Charlie Kirk’s rally in Utah on September 10, 2025.
“Security planning for events depend upon threat analysis. Charlie Kirk is a bit of a lightning rod. He tends to attract people who want to argue with him and you might say that because of that, that should have been taken into account as far as setting up security.
“But nonetheless, it costs money to set up security. Kirk had his own security team that was there with him, but it’s no the same as planning for an event like Secret Service does, where they are able to control a lot of the different aspects of the venue.
“In this particular case, the shooter came onto campus, got access to the building, got up on the rooftop without actually being there where the venue was taking place.
“Even if they had metal detectors and had they been checking QR codes, this person would not have been stopped from getting into the event. I think the thing is that how much are you willing to pay to provide a secure event for something like this.
“And to be able to put together a security that can cover all the bases would cost a lot of money to do so. And usually, it is the student organization receiving funds through the university that pay for the event to include the security for the event.
“Things like the campus cops, those are paid separately. That’s part of the university facility. But if you bring in additional security members, that costs money.”
Gray’s take on campus security’s lack of vigilance of campus rooftops:
“The question is how many people are out there roaming and how many buildings do they have. The likelihood of a person being stopped by a security person with an event like this going on where there’s concentration on where the people are all congregated or getting into that event makes it less likely that there would be additional bodies out in surrounding buildings.
“So the bigger question is, do they have doors or rooftops locked or not locked, alarmed, or not alarmed? And I don’t know the answer to that. You would think that universities would not want students gaining access to rooftops, but that’s not always the case.
“I’m sure they probably do not make it easy to get onto the tops of roofs on that campus. But if this guy had scooped it out beforehand, he may have found a way to get up on there.
“But I don’t know if he exactly knew the layout of how they were planning the event or if he just found the right spot by happenstance.”
TIME TO PROCESS
As outrage continues to simmer, with Kirk’s fervent fanbase demanding immediate action, many want to see Robinson pay for his alleged crimes.
Attorney Bassett, however, is calling for calm.
With Trump’s second term in office scheduled to end in 2028, any change of administration at the White House could add a further spanner into the works.
“Each Department of Justice or each president has priorities,” he continued. “So typically, before Trump 2.0, the Department of Justice was very deliberate and careful about choosing what cases to seek the death penalty on.
“It required a months-long process, and they had a committee that debated it and made recommendations to the Attorney General.
“I would guess it’s accelerated under this administration and probably much more pro-death penalty than the prior administration.
“They may move much more quickly, but the other processes of getting competent counsel and hiring the right experts still have to be played out in the district court, even after a decision is made to pursue the death penalty.”
“If you represent this young man and you agree to a death penalty plea, you should turn in your law license because that’s the worst thing that can happen if you try the case and it’s the death penalty for God’s sake,” Bassett concluded.
“I strongly believe it should take a long time. It should be reviewed by several pairs of eyes and the defendant should be afforded every opportunity to exercise due process all along the way.”
Speaking on Fox & Friends yesterday morning, Trump announced that Robinson had been captured after being turned in by his dad.
And as the conversation went on, he once again stated the need for the US to have “quick trials”.
He said: “One thing I say is we have to have quick trials. I call it quick trials.
“Because in China, they do have quick trials, you know?”
“They don’t wait six years, and claim all sorts of reasons.”
He added: “They should have a trial the following day, as far as I’m concerned.”
Chad D. Cummings fears the legal process could take years to resolve[/caption]
Tyler Robinson has been arrested in connection with Charlie Kirk’s killing[/caption]
