A former officer describes finding a “sniper’s platform” on a nearby rooftop after the assassination of Charlie Kirk

PROVO, Utah (AP) — A former campus police officer testified Monday that he found an apparent “sniper’s platform” on a roof near where Charlie Kirk was murdered, as prosecutors sought to convince a state judge they had enough evidence to try a Utah man for murder.

Christopher Bagley, a former Utah Valley University administrator, said he witnessed Kirk being shot while the conservative activist was speaking to a crowd of thousands last year. Shortly after, Bagley went to a nearby gravel surface, where someone appeared to be lying down with a clear view of Kirk’s location, he said.

“It looks like a sniper’s platform,” Bagley said, adding, “You have marks on the elbows, knees and feet.”

The testimony came as Kirk’s parents, Katherine and Robert, and widow Erika, were in the courtroom for the first time since the case began, along with Donald Trump Jr., President Donald Trump’s son.

Prosecutors are demanding the death penalty for defendant Tyler Robinson. The five-day preliminary hearing that began Monday represents the most significant presentation of evidence yet in the case.

Robinson’s parents were also present, sitting a few rows behind the Kirks when the hearing began. The 23-year-old defendant is charged with premeditated murder in the September 10 assassination of Kirk, a conservative activist and Trump ally. Robinson turned himself in the day after the shooting.

Robinson has not yet made any confession, and his lawyers have not commented on his guilt or innocence. However, they have sought to abolish the death penalty, but so far to no avail.

Low threshold for prosecutors

Tyler Robinson, accused of shooting Charlie Kirk, appears during a hearing in December in 4th District Court in Provo, Utah. Photo by Rick Egan/Salt Lake Tribune via Pool/AP Photo

Prosecutors showed several videos of Kirk’s shooting as they presented their case to District Judge Tony Graf. Lawyers on both sides tried to protect their observers from onlookers in the courtroom, after Graf said that videos of the assassination could not be released due to their graphic nature.

Utah State Bureau of Investigation Agent David Hall described the videos during questioning by prosecutors: They showed the crowd milling about at the event, Kirk’s interaction with some onlookers, the horrific moment when he was shot, and finally, an anxious scene when Kirk’s security detail picked him up and took him away while administering first aid.

Robinson sat quietly between his two lawyers throughout the hearing, looking at prosecution documents on a screen and occasionally taking notes. He was wearing a gray suit, and his wrists were tied with a chain around his waist.

Charlie Kirk’s parents and widow walked out of the courtroom as a police officer began testifying about Kirk’s arrival on campus the day he was shot. They returned later.

Charlie Kirk’s parents, Robert W. Kirk and Katherine Kirk, arrive at the 4th Judicial District Court in Provo, Utah, on Monday for a preliminary hearing for Tyler Robinson, the man accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Photography by Jim Urquhart/Reuters

The procedure is like a mini-trial, but prosecutors only need to prove there are reasonable grounds to believe Robinson killed Kirk. The standard is lower than at trial, where prosecutors must prove guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

As a result, prosecutors will have little difficulty moving their case forward, said Mark Koris, a former prosecutor and state judge in Salt Lake City.

“That bar is so low, the chances of not passing it are almost non-existent,” said Kouris, now an assistant professor at the University of Utah’s S. J. Quinney School of Law. “

Bagley, the prosecution’s first witness, said he could see the right side of Charlie Kirk’s body while Kirk was speaking on campus. Kirk was answering a question when Bagley heard a gunshot.

“I saw him turn to the left… and I couldn’t see the right side of his body anymore,” Bagley said. “Then everyone started getting up and running, and it was even more chaotic.”

Defense attorney Katherine Nester asked Bagley about an empty gun holster being found on the ground after the crowd fled. Bagley admitted that he never had custody of the wallet and did not know whether fingerprints had been taken.

Nester repeatedly objected to the evidence presented by prosecutors, but the judge overruled it. Any evidence from this week’s hearing must be resubmitted again for use at trial.

A registered roommate’s testimony can be a focal point

Prosecutors can use second-hand information, or hearsay, to help present their case. They expect to present between 40 and 50 exhibits during this week’s hearing.

Prosecutors said they plan to present DNA evidence linking Robinson to the suspected murder weapon, autopsy results, witness statements and video of Kirk’s killing. They are also expected to argue that the shooting endangered others at the Kirk campus event — an aggravating circumstance that could make the crime punishable by death under Utah law.

Prosecutors allege that Robinson confessed in a note left for his roommate, who was also his romantic partner, that said: “I have been given the opportunity to kill Charlie Kirk and I will take it.”

Once the hearing is completed, Graf must determine whether there is sufficient evidence to proceed with a trial in the case.

Read more: Did bullet analysis exonerate Charlie Kirk’s suspected killer? What does an “inconclusive” result mean?

Robinson’s roommate is not expected to testify in person during the hearing. However, the roommate’s recorded testimony can be a focal point for prosecutors.

In addition to the alleged confession note, Robinson reportedly texted his roommate that he targeted Kirk because he was “tired of his hatred,” prosecutors said.

Erica Kirk says court proceedings are ‘painful reminder’

Before his death, Kirk and the organization he co-founded, Turning Point USA, mobilized the conservative youth vote to help Trump win a second term.

The Republican president said he hopes Robinson will receive the death penalty.

Erica Kirk said during his memorial service that she forgives Robinson.

Before Monday’s hearing, she thanked supporters in a statement for their kindness and prayers.

“All of the court proceedings are a painful reminder of his death, a loss that has irrevocably affected our lives and the lives of his children,” she wrote.

She added that the popular outpouring “supported us through the darkest days of our lives.”

Brown reported from Billings, Montana.