The case against the man accused of killing Charlie Kirk moved into open court on Monday, as prosecutors in Utah laid out evidence they say is enough to send him to trial.

The hearing

The proceeding, in Utah's Fourth District Court, is a preliminary hearing, a step at which a judge weighs whether prosecutors have shown enough evidence for a case to proceed to trial, ABC7 reported. Prosecutors used it to begin presenting their case against the defendant, Tyler Robinson, 23, who is charged with aggravated murder. The state is seeking the death penalty.

Robinson has not entered a plea. Under the law, he is presumed innocent, and the allegations against him are just that, allegations, until they are proven in court.

What prosecutors say

In arguing that the case should go forward, prosecutors pointed to evidence they say ties Robinson to the killing, according to ABC7, including recordings and forensic material gathered in the investigation. The full presentation is expected to unfold over several days of testimony and exhibits before the judge rules on whether the case advances.

The defense, for its part, has contested aspects of the prosecution's approach, including the pursuit of capital punishment. The back-and-forth over what evidence is admissible and what it shows is the core work of a preliminary hearing.

Who Charlie Kirk was

Kirk, a co-founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, was a prominent and polarizing figure in American politics, a fixture on college campuses and in conservative media. He was fatally shot at an event at Utah Valley University, a killing that drew national attention and grief and anger across the political spectrum.

His widow and other family members attended Monday's hearing, ABC7 reported, a reminder that behind the legal machinery is a family that lost a husband and a son.

What comes next

The immediate question before the court is narrow: whether the evidence clears the bar to proceed toward trial. That decision will come after both sides have made their arguments over the coming days.

Though the case is being heard in Utah, far from Los Angeles, it is a national story, a high-profile prosecution that touches the country's raw political divisions. For now, the process is doing what it is designed to do, testing the state's evidence in public, one witness and one exhibit at a time.