Tag: utah

Utah Supreme Court Justice Faces Inquiry for Relationship With Lawyer in Congressional Redistricting Case

Utah Supreme Court Justice Diana Hagen is facing an investigation by state leaders after it was revealed that she reportedly had a romantic relationship with the lawyer who helped Democrats redraw the state’s congressional maps, stealing a seat from Republicans. 

Utah Governor Spencer Cox, Senate President J. Stuart Adams, and Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz are looking into a complaint that was submitted late last year about Hagen’s conduct with the attorney who was arguing the redistricting case before the high court.

“Texts reveal intimate relationship between the Justice and Attorney for the Redistricting case while the case was live. She ruled in their favor,” Hayek wrote. “Utah lost a safe Republican district thanks to the new map. Governor + legislative leaders launching a probe into the cozy “friendship.” Utah never should’ve lost that seat. Judicial swamp just got exposed.”

Here’s more:

The complaint, which was obtained exclusively by KSL through a public records request, came from a Provo-based attorney who said Hagen’s ex-husband told him the justice had exchanged “inappropriate” text messages with David Reymann, one of the attorneys involved in a case about redistricting, which led to Utah getting a new congressional map.

Hagen strongly denies allegations of an inappropriate relationship of any kind. Reymann also called the allegations “false.” He does outside legal work for KSL and as an attorney for the Utah Media Coalition, of which KSL is a member.

The Judicial Conduct Commission conducted a preliminary investigation into the complaint and interviewed Hagen’s ex-husband but ultimately decided not to investigate further. Gov. Spencer Cox, Senate President Stuart Adams and House Speaker Mike Schultz told KSL that’s concerning.

“An initial review by the Judicial Conduct Commission and the court left important questions unresolved,” they said in a joint statement Thursday. “Allegations of this nature, especially involving public officials, must be examined with transparency and accountability to establish the facts and to maintain public confidence.”

They added, “We will move forward with an independent investigation to ensure the facts are fully examined. This process will be conducted objectively and thoroughly, because maintaining trust in our institutions is essential.”

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REVEALED: Handwritten letter from Tyler Robinson to lover Lance ‘Luna’ Twiggs confesses to ‘taking out’ Charlie Kirk: court docs

In an unsealed affidavit for a search warrant in the case of Tyler Robinson, the man charged with the murder of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, it was revealed that he wrote a letter addressed to his trans lover and roommate, Lance Twiggs. That read: “If you are reading this … I am likely dead, or facing a lengthy prison sentence. I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I took it.”

Messages revealed in the affidavit for a search warrant show that Robinson sent messages to Twiggs after the assassination had occurred indicating that he was the one who committed the horrific act. Robinson made similiar declarations on Discord to other friends. 

The unsealed search warrant affadavits detail Robinson’s communications after the murder both in text and on Discord chat Robinson was a part of, where an acquaintance of his exclaimed, “Tyler killed Charlie!!!!” The warrants also detail a letter that Robinson left for Twiggs, whom the prosecution has also called on to testify in the case. Twiggs was taking black market hormone therapy and Robinson called him “Luna,” per Fox 13. 

“Luna, if you are reading this per my text, then I am so sorry. I left the house this morning on a mission, and sent an auto text. I am likely dead or facing a lengthy prison sentence. I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I took it,” Robinson stated in the letter, per the warrant. 

“I don’t know if I will/have succeeded, but I had hoped to make it home to you. I wish we could have lived in a world where this did not feel necessary. I wish I could have stayed for you and lived our lives together. I lack the words to express how much I love you, and how very much you mean to me. Please try and find joy in this life. I love you, always, -Tyler,” the capital murder suspect added. 

A portion of the warrant said that one of the items found in Robinson’s residence in St. George was a “burnt note found in the trash.”

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These 4 States Already Enacted SAVE Act Look-Alikes While John Thune Does Failure Theater

While the SAVE America Act continues to languish in the Senate under the supervision of Republican Leader John Thune, leaders and voters in several states have taken it upon themselves to secure their own elections from noncitizen voting.

The overwhelmingly popular SAVE America Act would amend U.S. election law to require proof of citizenship when registering to vote and voter ID when casting a ballot in federal elections. Federal lawmakers in the GOP-led Senate have yet to advance the common-sense legislation or commit to a “talking filibuster” that would allow it to pass with a simple majority. Meanwhile, within recent weeks, several states enacted their own citizenship verification election laws. Others are set to vote on amendment language clarifying that “only” U.S. citizens can vote in elections.

Already Law

Florida

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Florida’s own version of the SAVE Act into law last week. The law, which requires citizenship verification against REAL ID data when registering to vote, will go into effect in January of next year.

According to DeSantis’ office, the law also allows applicants to present proof confirming their eligibility, “establishes a clear process to identify and remove potentially ineligible noncitizens from voter rolls,” includes “explicit notice that submitting false voter registration information is a felony,” and mandates voting take place on paper ballots.

The state has adopted a number of election reforms since 2020, including stronger vote-by-mail safeguards, more secure ballot drop boxes, and stricter enforcement of election law, as DeSantis’ office noted.

Mississippi

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves also signed election integrity legislation into law last week. Named the Safeguard Honesty Integrity in Elections for Lasting Democracy (SHIELD) Act, the law requires registration officials to check certain applicants’ information against the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database to determine if they are citizens. This verification is required for registration applicants who are flagged as potential noncitizens or who do not provide their driver’s license number when registering to vote. As in Florida, if an applicant is determined to be a potential noncitizen, he will be given a chance to present documentation that proves citizenship.

The law also requires the registrar to annually report to the secretary of state “[t]he number of registrants flagged by a SAVE system check” and the number taken off the rolls “following confirmation.”

This law will take effect in July, ahead of the 2026 midterms.

South Dakota

Ironically, Thune’s own state has moved faster than he has when it comes to ensuring only Americans vote in American elections. Gov. Larry Rhoden signed South Dakota’s SB 175 into law last month. According to SDPB Radio, the legislation “requires anyone registering to vote for the first time in the state to provide proof of citizenship,” like a driver’s license issued after July 1, 2025 (the state recently enacted a law mandating that citizenship status be denoted on driver’s licenses), or a copy of a birth certificate.

“In South Dakota, we do things right, especially when running our state elections,” Rhoden said in a statement. “This bill ensures only citizens vote in state elections, keeping our elections safe and secure.”

This law went into effect immediately.

Utah

Gov. Spencer Cox signed Utah’s HB 209 into law late last month, and it is set to take effect on May 6 — more than a month before the state’s primary election. The law requires proof of citizenship when registering to vote in state elections. If an applicant registers to vote using a “federal voter registration form” and does not provide documentary proof of citizenship as laid out in the law, that voter can only vote in federal races.

The law also dictates that “a review of voter registration records be conducted by July 1 this year,” as Time summarized it. Voters who are already registered but “whose citizenship cannot be verified in that review will be notified by election officials and have to provide proof of citizenship to stay on the rolls.”

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Serious risk of ‘poisoning the jury’ in Charlie Kirk murder trial – former lawyer to RT

Inaccurate media reporting on the latest statements by the defense team in Charlie Kirk’s murder case shows that there is a real risk of “poisoning the jury” and affecting the trial, legal commentator and former lawyer David Freiheit has told RT.

Earlier this week, several outlets reported, citing the lawyers representing Tyler Robinson – the man accused of killing Kirk – that the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) could not conclusively connect a bullet fragment recovered from Kirk’s body to a rifle found at the scene.

According to Freiheit, some of those reports, such as the one by the Daily Mail, were inaccurate. “The headline was overtly misleading,” he said, adding that the British media outlet said “it did not match, whereas in reality… the ATF or the reports [said] that they couldn’t match it based on the fragments, which is not uncommon in these types of incidents.” 

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Tyler Robinson’s parents, trans boyfriend to testify for prosecution in Charlie Kirk murder trial

A Friday motion filed by the defense team of Tyler Robinson, the man charged with assassinating Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, revealed that the prosecution intends to call Robinson’s parents, as well as his transgender roommate with whom he had a romantic relationship, as witnesses in the preliminary hearing currently set for May. The defense is attempting to delay those proceedings.

The defense filing stated that counsel for the parties met on March 12 and spoke about discovery issues and evidence the state intends to present in May. The preliminary hearing is currently set to take place the week of May 18 through 22.

“Based upon the State’s representations at this meeting, the State intends to present discrete ‘buckets’ of evidence through three identified law enforcement witnesses. This includes conclusory forensic DNA and ballistics reports authored by the FBI and the ATF, phone and social media data, testimony by law enforcement officials about the crime scene and search locations, and testimony by Mr. Robinson’s parents and roommate,” the filing stated.

The team requested that the court either vacate or delay the May preliminary hearing dates currently scheduled, citing the large amount of discovery materials that need to be reviewed.

“Discovery in this case is incomplete, voluminous, and the processing of it is complex,” the defense team wrote. They said that the initial review of digital electronic discovery received during the March 12 meeting “is anticipated to take sixty days to complete, after which time it can be determined if the downloads are complete, or if additional time is necessary to obtain complete downloads.”

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Sheriff Who Handled Surrender of Charlie Kirk Assassination Suspect Abruptly RESIGNS After 30 Years

Longtime Washington County Sheriff Nate Brooksby has officially stepped down after more than three decades in law enforcement, just months after playing a central role in the high-profile surrender of the man accused of assassinating conservative hero Charlie Kirk.

According to KUTV, Brooksby quietly submitted his resignation last Friday, with county officials confirming his departure and thanking him for his service.

“We express our sincere appreciation for his dedication and service to Washington County,” the county said in a statement.

According to ABC4, Brooksby met with county commissioners on Friday to discuss vague “complaints” about office operations. Hours later, he resigned on the spot.

The news outlet added that “the individuals who made the complaints against the Sheriff’s Office have requested that no further action be taken, a request that is being respected.”

Sheriff Brooksby was the man who personally facilitated the surrender of Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old charged with gunning down Charlie Kirk in broad daylight at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025.

According to Brooksby himself, Robinson was “fearful of being shot” and insisted on turning himself in under carefully managed conditions.

The sheriff worked with a retired deputy and the suspect’s family to arrange the surrender, an unusual process for a suspect accused of a politically motivated assassination.

Robinson ultimately turned himself in after a 33-hour manhunt.

Just hours before Brooksby’s resignation became public, bombshell reports emerged from Robinson’s defense team.

On the same day Boorksby resigned, Tyler Robinson’s attorneys filed a motion seeking to postpone his May 18 preliminary hearing, pointing to an ATF report that determined toolmark analysis on a bullet jacket recovered during Kirk’s autopsy was inconclusive due to extensive damage.

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Bullet used to kill Charlie Kirk did NOT match rifle allegedly used by suspect Tyler Robinson, new court filing claims

The bullet that killed conservative commentator Charlie Kirk did not match the rifle used by suspected killer Tyler Robinson, a bombshell new court filing states.

Robinson, 22, is facing capital murder charges and a potential death sentence for Kirk’s murder at Utah Valley University on September 10.

But his defense attorneys now argue that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives ‘was unable to identify the bullet recovered at autopsy to the rifle allegedly tied to Mr Robinson.’

The defense team may now offer the ATF firearm analyst’s testimony as exculpatory evidence, they said in a motion filed on Friday to push the preliminary hearing back at least six months, Fox News reports. 

It also notes that DNA reports filed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and ATF will take time for the defense team to analyze because reports indicated that several different DNA were found on some items of evidence.

‘As these cases indicate, determining the number of contributors to a DNA mixture and determining whether the FBI and the ATF reliably applied validated and correct scientific procedures… is a complicated process which requires the assistance of various types of experts, including forensic biologists, geneticists, system engineers and statisticians, all of whom must review and evaluate’ several different categories, the filing states, according to Deseret News. 

Robinson’s attorneys added that they have received about 20,000 electronic audio files, videos and written documents that prosecutors have presented as evidence in the case.

‘The defense team has devoted, and will continue to devote, significant resources, to processing discovery, including identifying materials not yet received to inform readiness for the preliminary hearing,’ the filing states.

‘However, the defense team is realistic and the comprehensive review required to determine what is missing will take hundreds of hours.’

‘What is known at present is that Mr Robinson has not yet received the forensic case files and data necessary to investigate, through the use of qualified experts, the scientific reports the state intends to introduce at the preliminary hearing,’ the attorneys continued.

Defense attorneys and prosecutors had previously met on March 12.

Based on that meeting, the defense said in the motion it believes prosecutors will introduce ‘discrete “buckets” of evidence through three identified law enforcement witnesses at the preliminary hearing.

‘This includes a conclusory forensic DNA and ballistic reports authored by the FBI and the ATF, social media data, testimony by law enforcement officers about the crime scene and search locations, and testimony by Mr Robinson’s parents and roommate’ as well as ‘a significant amount of hearsay’ from ‘non-testifying peace officers.’ 

Prosecutors have alleged Robinson drove three hours from his home to the university campus to kill Kirk, 31.

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Utah Bans Polygraph Tests for Those Reporting Sexual Assault

For years, Utah allowed government officials to do something other states banned: ask a person who reports a sexual assault to take a polygraph test.

That will change soon. Earlier this month, state lawmakers passed a bill that prohibits police and other government officials from requesting polygraph tests for alleged sex assault victims. Gov. Spencer Cox signed it into law on Thursday, and it goes into effect in May. 

Experts say these tests are known to be especially unreliable with victims of sexual abuse. That’s because victims may have stress and anxiety recounting their assault that the polygraph may interpret as deception. Other states don’t allow them to be used with assault victims for this reason.

It took two years and three legislative sessions for Utah state Rep. Angela Romero, the House minority leader, to get the bill across the finish line. When she first sponsored it in 2024, she cited reporting from The Salt Lake Tribune and ProPublica as she told her fellow legislators the damaging effects polygraph tests can have on people who are reporting sexual abuse. 

In the case covered by the news outlets, state licensors asked a man to take a polygraph test after he reported that his therapist, Scott Owen, had touched him inappropriately. The test results indicated he was being deceptive, and that led the patient to drop his complaint. Owen was allowed to continue to practice for two more years, until others came forward with similar allegations. Owen is now in prison after admitting he sexually abused patients.

Romero said in a recent interview that she was determined to bring the bill back for that former patient.

“For me, it was really specifically for that one individual who was not believed,” Romero said, “and then their perpetrator went on to harm other people.”

Cox signed the legislation during a small ceremony at his office, telling Romero that she “has been such a champion, and made a difference and saved lives.” The governor also nodded to The Tribune and ProPublica’s reporting driving change.

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‘Charlie Kirk Wasn’t Assassinated, He Died From White on White Gun Violence’: Florida State Dem Rep

Ashley Viola Gantt criticized efforts to commemorate Charlie Kirk, arguing that he should not be honored in Florida and that discussions surrounding his death should be framed with more precise language.

Speaking about proposals to mark a day of remembrance, Gantt said the First Amendment already protects free speech and questioned the need for additional recognition.

“We want to talk about exercising free speech. Let’s ball so the First Amendment protects free speech. We don’t need this day of remembrance for a man that was mediocre and racist, and I say mediocre at best, he was not a Floridian,” Gantt said.

“He had no ties to Florida other than owning property.”

Gantt added that Florida is home to individuals and organizations who promote what she described as non-divisive free speech.

“We have a number of Floridians, both individuals and organizations that promote free speech that is not divisive, like this individual was,” she said.

Addressing how Kirk’s death has been characterized in public discourse, Gantt emphasized the importance of word choice.

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Judge Denies Tyler Robinson’s Request to Disqualify Utah Prosecutors from Kirk Murder Case

Judge Tony Graf on Tuesday denied Tyler Robinson’s request to disqualify Utah prosecutors in the Charlie Kirk murder case.

Last month Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson sought to disqualify Utah prosecutors on the case over a conflict of interest.

Robinson fatally shot TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk on September 10, 2025 during an event at Utah Valley University.

A child of one of the Utah County Attorney’s Office prosecutors was 85 feet away from Charlie Kirk and police rushed in to protect her.

Robinson was charged with:

– Count 1: Aggravated murder (capital offense)
– Count 2: Felony reckless discharge of a firearm causing bodily injury
– Count 3: Felony obstruction of justice for hiding the firearm
– Count 4: Felony obstruction of justice for discarding the clothing he wore during the shooting
– Count 5: Witness tampering for asking roommate to delete incriminating messages
– Count 6: Witness tampering for demanding trans roommate stay silent, and not speak to police
– Count 7: Commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child

Utah prosecutors are also seeking the death penalty.

Robinson, 22, has three public defenders: Kathy Nester, Michael Burt, and Richard Novak.

On Tuesday, Judge Graf denied Robinson’s motion to disqualify the Utah County prosecutors office.

“Because the defendant has not established a factual basis for a finding of a conflict of interest or an objective appearance of impropriety rising to a constitutional concern, his motion is respectfully denied,” Judge Graf said.

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