PROVO, Utah — Several witnesses remain, and there is a long way to go before any decision is made, but the future of the case against Tyler Robinson for the Utah County Attorney’s Office is left hanging in the balance.
If Judge Tony Graf sides with the defense and removes the prosecution due to an alleged conflict of interest because the daughter of a deputy county attorney attended the rally where Charlie Kirk was shot, legal experts say the case may still stay within Utah County.
Graf could grant this motion to recuse in part, and a new deputy attorney under Jeff Gray would be assigned, but that could change if the court finds the conflict of interest has infected the entire department.
“The court then could grant the motion and send the case to another county to be prosecuted, almost like a change of venue. But it’s not done because of trial publicity, it’s done to resolve a true, actual, legal conflict of interest," explained criminal trial attorney Philip Dubé.
Tyler Robinson defense team asks judge to disqualify prosecutors:
As a former district attorney, Dubé has experience in several areas of the judicial system. He explained that a third option would be to "conflict off" every county in Utah, bringing it instead to the state Attorney General’s office.
Dubé says any change of venue would set the timeline back significantly as the new prosecution team catches up with the case. He noted that the defense has a duty to explore all avenues available to get the case out of the hands of prosecutors for Robinson, especially in a death penalty case.
But he believes that proving this conflict will be a tall order.
“Lord only knows how many students who were at that university lived out of county,
he said. "It’s very possible there were students who were present who actually come from other counties where the case could potentially go, and could be related, who knows, maybe to a secretary from the DA’s office.
"So at some point, where does it end?”
Dubé notes that if the motion is denied, a preliminary hearing is currently set for May. If it's granted, he expects that to delay this case by a minimum of three months.
