Donna Rotunno said Judge Tony Graf could stop the Charlie Kirk assassination preliminary hearing and move the case toward trial if he has heard enough evidence. On Thursday, she warned on Outnumbered that the judge could lose control of the courtroom as the hearing entered its fourth day.
Rotunno said, "He can stop all this and say, 'I've heard enough evidence, there is enough to move this case on to trial, and we don't need to continue along this path, because I've heard what I need to hear at this juncture." She also said, "He does run the risk of becoming Judge [Lance] Ito. What we are watching here is that he is not taking control."
Judge Tony Graf and the hearing
Rotunno said the judge was not taking control of the timing, the scheduling, or the deadlines. She said the defense filed objections at the 11th hour in the middle of the hearing, even as the court was allowing argument on the most significant piece of evidence expected.
She described the dispute as a repeat of issues that had already had the opportunity to be dealt with. In her view, that left Graf with a choice: end the evidentiary fight and move the case on, or keep the preliminary hearing going.
Luna Twiggs audio clips
Utah prosecutors played audio clips of police officers interviewing Luna Twiggs on Thursday. Twiggs is Tyler Robinson's former roommate and onetime romantic partner.
The defense tried to stop the clips from being played and argued that prosecutors would treat Twiggs' statements as a confession. Rotunno said the defense was still pressing that fight while the hearing continued.
Tyler Robinson and the path ahead
Tyler Robinson turned himself in one day after Charlie Kirk was shot, and he has not entered a plea. The hearing had already been slowed by repeated evidentiary disputes before Thursday, which left the judge with the task of deciding whether enough had been heard to send the case forward.
Rotunno said, "We're just going to move on to the next phase of this proceeding." For now, the practical issue is whether Judge Tony Graf ends the disputes at the hearing or keeps taking evidence before any trial move.
