Updated

Updated · The Washington Post · Jul 9

Tyler James Robinson Confessed to Charlie Kirk Shooting, Roommate Testifies at Day 4 Hearing

Updated

Updated · The Washington Post · Jul 9

Tyler James Robinson Confessed to Charlie Kirk Shooting, Roommate Testifies at Day 4 Hearing

Q: Why was the suspect's partner, whose DNA was on the weapon, granted immunity instead of facing charges?

He was granted immunity because prosecutors viewed him as a necessary cooperating witness, not because they had ruled out his possible exposure. Court records indicate Lance Twiggs received “use immunity,” a narrower form of protection that prevents his statements to investigators from being used against him in a future criminal case. It does not necessarily bar charges based on other independent evidence. Prosecutors used that protection to secure his recorded interviews and avoid his invoking the Fifth Amendment. Twiggs was central to the case against Tyler Robinson. Investigators say Robinson left him a note saying he intended to kill Charlie Kirk and later sent a text effectively confirming he was the shooter. Prosecutors also wanted Twiggs’ account to explain the relationship between the two men, the apartment they shared, and the alleged confession evidence. His DNA being found on the towel wrapped around the rifle created potential criminal exposure for Twiggs, which made immunity more important from the prosecution’s perspective. Rather than charge him immediately and risk losing his cooperation, prosecutors appear to have decided that his testimony and statements were more valuable in building the aggravated murder case against Robinson. So the practical answer is that immunity was a prosecutorial tool: it allowed investigators to obtain key evidence from a witness whose own connection to the weapon could otherwise have led him to remain silent.

3 articles · Updated · The Washington Post · Jul 9

A video interview played in a Utah courtroom on Thursday showed Tyler James Robinson’s roommate saying the 23-year-old confessed shortly after Charlie Kirk was shot and said he wished he had not done it.
Day 4 of the preliminary hearing focused on prosecutors’ effort to tie Robinson directly to the killing through the roommate’s account of the immediate aftermath.
Lance Twiggs, identified in court as Robinson’s roommate, had already confirmed in the recorded interview that the two lived in separate rooms in the same apartment.
The testimony adds a key piece of prosecution evidence as the Utah court weighs whether the case against Robinson should advance.