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Published 10:57 31 Mar 2026 GMT
Major twist in Charlie Kirk shooting case as bullet used to kill him was different to the weapon used
New court filings in the case of Charlie Kirk’s death show that the bullet recovered from his body did not match the rifle federal analysts examined. Defence lawyers for suspect Tyler Robinson claim that firearms experts from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were unable to link the bullet to the rifle allegedly tied to Robinson.
Robinson, 22, faces capital murder charges and a possible death sentence over the shooting at Utah Valley University last September. The defence plans to use the ATF analyst testimony to support claims of reasonable doubt in the case. Prosecutors previously identified a Mauser model 98 rifle found at the scene as the weapon involved.
The debate over ballistic matching
Per The Mirror, court documents filed on Friday say that the ATF "was unable to identify the bullet recovered at autopsy to the rifle allegedly tied to Mr Robinson". Prosecutors say the rifle belonged to Robinson’s grandfather. The original Mausers were built to fire eight millimetre cartridges, but the recovered gun was a .30-06 calibre rifle.
News of the mismatch led to widespread speculation online, which some gun experts sought to explain. One, Zack Bonfilio, pointed out that "soft point rounds like those used in a .30-06 rifle are difficult to be matched because they are designed to expand and fragment upon contact with their target". That explanation suggests why a clear match was not made through ballistic analysis.
Defence seeks more time to review evidence
The defence has asked for at least a six month delay before the preliminary hearing. Filings indicate that DNA analysis from the FBI and ATF revealed genetic material from multiple individuals on some evidence items. Lawyers said evaluating these findings will require consultations with forensic biologists, geneticists, system engineers and statisticians.
Prosecutors have provided roughly 20,000 electronic files including audio recordings, videos and written documents. The motion states "The defence team has devoted, and will continue to devote, significant resources, to processing discovery". Attorneys added that the review needed to identify missing materials will require hundreds of hours of work.
Messages and confessions from suspect
Robinson was handed over to authorities by his father, Matt, after the father spotted the family rifle in police photos released during the search for Kirk’s killer. Text messages allegedly exchanged between Robinson and his roommate Lance Twiggs show the accused discussing the rifle he left behind.
In one message, Robinson allegedly wrote "If I am able to grab my rifle unseen, I will have left no evidence" and a second message said "Only thing I left was the rifle wrapped in a towel".
After Kirk’s death, Robinson allegedly confessed to his father, who then contacted police. Robinson returns to court on April 17 for a hearing on whether cameras and microphones should be allowed in the courtroom. Erika Kirk, Kirk’s widow, has supported full transparency, saying "We deserve to have cameras in there".
There has been extensive publicity over the case, including comments from Donald Trump after the arrest in which he said he hopes "he gets the death penalty". The defence plans to present evidence about what they describe as harmful and prejudicial media coverage.