A federal judge rejected a request from the family of an accused shooter to display all exhibits in the case against the man charged with killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk at a Utah university event in September 2025.
Judge Tony Graf Jr. made the ruling Wednesday during preliminary hearings in Provo as prosecutors presented evidence. The decision followed the family’s attempt to access materials, including what prosecutors describe as a confession statement from Lance Twiggs, the accused shooter’s romantic partner.
What the Evidence Shows
A Utah state investigator testified that DNA belonging to Twiggs was recovered from critical items collected at the September 10 shooting scene at Utah Valley University. Jennifer Faumina, a sergeant with the Utah Department of Public Safety assigned to the State Bureau of Investigation, presented DNA analysis results from the witness stand.
Faumina identified male DNA from Twiggs on two significant pieces of evidence recovered during the investigation. “Male DNA was obtained from item 7-1. Item 7-1 was interpreted as originating from two individuals, one of whom is Twiggs,” Faumina testified.
The items were identified in court as a screwdriver recovered from a rooftop and a towel wrapped around the rifle prosecutors say the defendant used in the shooting.
The Legal Proceedings
The Utah Supreme Court declined last week to hear the defense’s appeal of two pretrial rulings by Judge Graf. The decision cleared the way for the preliminary hearing to proceed as scheduled.
The defense had challenged the judge’s decisions allowing cameras in the courtroom and permitting certain hearsay evidence during the proceeding. “The petition for permission to appeal from an interlocutory order is denied,” the state’s highest court stated in its ruling.
The defense had also requested that Graf postpone the preliminary hearing pending the appeal, but that motion was rejected.
Media Access Questions
The question of allowing media cameras in the courtroom has surfaced repeatedly throughout pretrial proceedings. Defense attorneys first sought appellate review of Graf’s rulings in May after he rejected their request for a blanket prohibition on cameras during the case.
Graf determined that requests for electronic media coverage would be evaluated on a case-by-case basis rather than through a blanket policy. News organizations must submit camera requests at least 14 days before any scheduled proceeding, while either party may ask the court to restrict or prohibit such coverage.
The judge granted only one of the defense’s motions to restrict media access, ruling that a media outlet that submitted its request one day late would not be permitted to take still photographs during the hearing’s opening day.
This story has been updated. CNN’s legal affairs team contributed to this report.
