Most executions in the US are carried out by fatal injections, but Robinson has been tested in Utah.
Suspect charged with Charlie Kirk’s shooting seeks death penalty
Utah prosecutors have announced plans to indict Tyler James Robinson, 22, for murder that was aggravated by the shooting of Charlie Kirk and seek the death penalty.
Within hours of Charlie Kirk’s assassination last week, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox began talking about pursuing the death penalty for the incident. President Trump expressed his support for the move early on.
It became official on Tuesday, September 16th. At a press conference that announced the official charges against 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray said the prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty.
However, this decision opens the door to another question. Utah allows executions by firing a squad or fatal injection, which of the two is likely to be used in the event of a conviction and death sentence?
Gray said the issue of death penalty in all forms is tough for prosecutors.
“I’m not underestimating this decision, it’s a decision I made independently as a county attorney based solely on the evidence and circumstances available and the circumstances of the crime,” Gray said. “I spoke with both officials from the (Cox and Trump) administration and I couldn’t put any pressure on them to make a decision.”
Gray stressed that “the accused is presumed to be innocent until we, the state, of the defendant’s fellow impartial ju-san, proves guilt beyond reasonable doubt.”
Most executions in the United States are carried out by fatal injections, but Robinson faces trial in Utah. This is just one of two death penalty states in US history that used fire teams. (South Carolina is the other.)
USA Today is considering the use of controversial execution methods in states and countries. And they are considering whether Robinson can face fire forces if he is convicted of murder and sentenced to death. This is what you need to know.
How to run a shooting squad
Since 1977, two states have fired squads and executed five prisoners, but this year two executions have occurred.
South Carolina allowed inmates to choose between a fatal injection, a firing squad or electric shock, and executed Brad Keith Sigmon in March and Mikal Mardy in April. For each, the condition placed the hoods on the man’s head, tied them to a chair, placed the target in his mind, and fired them simultaneously with three bullets.
Before this year, only Utah had executed the firing squad in 1977, 1996 and 2010.
Utah was a few days away from the execution of shooting squad this month before the Utah Supreme Court intervened. The state was scheduled to execute Ralph Menzies by firing the squad on September 5th for the murder of three married mothers in 1986. Menzies chose the shooting squad decades ago, but the state’s high court stopped it over concerns about his current dementia and whether he still understands why he is still being executed.
Idaho, Mississippi and Oklahoma – Three other states have legalized shooting units as a method of execution. Idaho plans to legalize the method in 2023 and become the state’s main method by next summer. A new bill passed in Florida earlier this year will allow executions using non-traditional methods like shooting squads when fatal injections become “impossible or unrealistic.”
Can Tyler Robinson face a shooting squad?
The short answer is yes. If he is convicted of murder and sentenced to death, he will be in a state where he has the execution of legal dismissal forces.
However, the state’s current default implementation method is fatal injection.
Before 2004, inmates could choose to die by firing a squad with a fatal injection, but now they have no choice. Under current law, prisoners will be executed by fatal injection unless the method is found to be unconstitutional or the lethal drug used in the execution is unavailable.
The U.S. Supreme Court has never found a way to enforce unconstitutionality, but states have found it difficult to take fatal injections. South Carolina, for example, legalized its shooting squad in 2021 after state officials said they were struggling to obtain drugs.
It is not yet seen whether Utah will report similar difficulties in obtaining drugs in the future. That means a goodwill for the execution of the shooting squad,” said Dale Beich, who has represented death row inmates for 37 years and has taught the death penalty course at Arizona State University.
What is the timeline for Tyler Robinson’s case?
The Tyler Robinson case is just beginning. His first court hearing took place on Tuesday, September 16th, when Judge Tony Graf read the charges against him and appointed an attorney to represent him, but the person has not been appointed. He is charged with aggravated murder and six other felony.
Robinson, who appeared in the video from the prison, seemed to nod a bit when prosecutor Chad Granander said his team was pursuing the death penalty. Robinson enters a petition against him on a future court date.
Murder cases can take months or years to reach conclusions in the United States, and those convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death often spend decades on death row inmates as appeals slowly move through the system.
“We’re really at the beginning of this journey,” said Robin Maher, executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Death Penalty Information Center.
“We know that it is certainly argued, and we know that the state seeks the death penalty, but there is still a huge amount of information that we need to learn about who this person is. “Many things are still unknown.”
Even if the death sentence was handed down, Baich added, “It would be at least 20 years, perhaps more than that before the sentence is enacted because of mandatory and available appeals.”
In Utah, the ju judge decides whether someone convicted of murder has been sentenced to death. When they weigh decisions, they are asked to consider a number of factors, including the defendant’s mental health and whether childhood trauma should save their lives.
Amanda Lee Myers is a senior crime reporter at USA Today. Follow her on x at @amandaleusat.
