(Ken Silva, Headline USA) Lawyers for alleged Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson said in a Friday court filing that the ATF was unable to match the bullet that killed Kirk to Robinson’s rifle.
According to Deseret News, Robinson’s lawyers said that an initial report from the ATF “indicates that the ATF was unable to identify the bullet recovered at autopsy to the rifle allegedly tied to Mr. Robinson.” Robinson’s lawyers said they may use the ATF analysis as exculpatory evidence at their client’s preliminary hearing in May.
Hours after Deseret News published its report, the Daily Mail ran a similar story—but with a misleading headline that said the bullet from Kirk’s body “did NOT match” Robinson’s rifle. While the ATF was apparently unable to match the bullet to the rifle, that’s different than suggesting that the bullet was conclusively not a match the .30-06 rifle.
The bullet that killed Kirk has been a subject of great intrigue due in large part to the fact that there was no exit wound. Skeptics say that a .30-06 round should have blown a hole through Kirk’s neck—though ballistics experts say it’s possible the bullet wouldn’t have created an exit wound if it tumbled downward and fragmented on Kirk’s spine. Many of those same experts noted that the ATF wouldn’t be able to match the bullet to the rifle if it indeed fragmented.
Completely and utterly misleading garbage.
The bullet is "unable to be identified" because it fucking fragmented into a bunch of pieces, dipshit, and when that happens they don't do some magic "CSI: Las Vegas" animation where they manage to reassemble the bullet and perfectly… https://t.co/3AvcH3ka1h pic.twitter.com/LzXaHrsJaA
— Fenix Ammunition (@FenixAmmunition) March 31, 2026
Robinson’s filing also said his lawyers are still waiting on other case evidence, such as DNA analysis.
“Two federal law enforcement agencies, ATF and FBI, and State Bureau of Investigation have not been able to produce discovery in time for the May 2026 preliminary hearing to occur,” the motion reportedly says.
“Both the Utah County Attorney’s Office and Mr. Robinson continue to await a vast amount of information relevant to a review of the FBI’s and the ATF’s DNA analysis, including but not limited to validation studies and crucial electronic data files, the report and case file for a comparative bullet analysis and bullet lead analysis that is still in progress at the FBI, and the case file and protocols for a comparative bullet analysis conducted by the ATF.”
Robinson’s preliminary hearing is set for May 18. He also has a hearing on April 17 to argue about whether cameras will be allowed in the courtroom.
Ken Silva is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/jd_cashless.
