A defense attorney called Charlie Kirk “hateful” in open court, with Kirk’s grieving family watching.
The comment came Tuesday during a preliminary hearing for Tyler Robinson, 23, the man accused of assassinating Kirk on September 10, 2025. Kirk, the 31-year-old founder of Turning Point USA, was shot and killed in front of thousands at Utah Valley University.
California-based defense attorney Richard Novak made the remark while arguing against sending the case to trial. “Mr. Kirk spoke hatefully of certain groups of people,” Novak told the court. He also argued that a “significant gap” existed between Kirk’s beliefs and how Robinson perceived him.
Kirk’s parents, widow, and other family members were seated inside the courtroom when Novak spoke. Some became emotional. Others exchanged looks as he repeated the characterization.
As originally reported, the comments drew immediate criticism, including from legal professionals watching the case from outside Utah.
New Jersey criminal defense attorney David Gelman called the remarks deeply unprofessional. “That was so out of left field that he honestly should be embarrassed of what he said,” Gelman stated. He added that such characterizations have no place at a preliminary hearing, particularly with the victim’s family present. You don’t ever, and I mean ever, say that as a defense attorney or a prosecutor,” he said. “To do that at a preliminary hearing, when you have the victim’s family all there, that was totally uncalled for.”
Gelman drew a clear line between trial strategy and what happened Tuesday. He acknowledged that attorneys sometimes work to portray victims negatively before a jury, but said this was neither the time nor the place. “If you want to paint Charlie as a bad person in front of the jury, knock your socks off,” he said. “But not at a preliminary hearing.”
Prosecutors pushed back sharply inside the courtroom. Chief Deputy Utah County Attorney Chad Grunander told the judge that nothing presented during the hearing supported the claim that Kirk harbored hatred toward any group. “He had an opinion that he would express on politics and religion,” Grunander said. “That doesn’t make it hate.” He added that Novak’s framing actually reinforced the state’s case, arguing it reflected Robinson’s own stated motive.
Jeffrey Neiman, an attorney representing the Kirk family, defended Kirk’s legacy and noted his history of publicly debating those who disagreed with him. “Charlie was the opposite of hate,” Neiman said. “Firing a bullet into a crowd and assassinating him. That is hate.”
Prosecutors have alleged that Robinson himself used the language of hatred when explaining the killing in messages sent to his roommate and romantic partner, Lance Twiggs.