ABC News reporter Matt Gutman has come under fire for describing messages sent by alleged Charlie Kirk shooter Tyler Robinson as “touching.”
Robinson, 22, was charged with Kirk’s murder on Tuesday, with prosecutors announcing they are seeking the death penalty.
Kirk, 31, was shot and killed on September 10 at a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University.
Highlights
- ABC reporter Matt Gutman described texts from alleged shooter Tyler Robinson as 'very touching,' sparking widespread backlash online.
- Tyler Robinson, 22, was charged with Charlie Kirk's murder and faces the death penalty after the shooting at Utah Valley University.
- Robinson's texts revealed a close relationship with his transitioning roommate, repeatedly calling them 'my love' and showing concern.
Matt Gutman described messages sent by Tyler Robinson as “touching”
Image credits: ABC News
Gutman reported from a press conference announcing the charges in Utah and spoke of the text messages Robinson had sent to his partner after the shooting.
He described them as “very touching, in a way that I think many of us didn’t expect.”
“A very intimate portrait into this relationship between the suspect’s roommate and the suspect himself, with him repeatedly calling his roommate, who is transitioning, calling him ‘my love.’ And ‘I want to protect you, my love,’” Gutman added.
The report quickly came under fire online, with many criticizing Gutman’s choice of words.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis shared the clip on X and wrote: “Legacy media in all its glory…”
“Wait, what???” Senator Jim Banks added.
Several social media users described the commentary as “disgusting” and called for Gutman to be fired.
The text messages were detailed in an information document filed by prosecutors on Tuesday.
Robinson is alleged to have texted his roommate, who is transitioning from male to female, and told them to “drop what you are doing, look under my keyboard.”
Image credits: Utah State Courts via Getty Images)
The roommate, also Robinson’s romantic partner, reportedly found a note that stated, “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it.”
The couple then exchanged several text messages:
Roommate: What?????????????? You’re joking, right????
Robinson: I am still ok my love, but am stuck in orem for a little while longer yet. Shouldn’t be long until I can come home, but I gotta grab my rifle still. To be honest I had hoped to keep this secret till I died of old age. I am sorry to involve you.
Roommate: You weren’t the one who did it right????
Robinson: I am, I’m sorry
Roommate: I thought they caught the person?
Robinson: No, they grabbed some crazy old dude, then interrogated someone in similar clothing. I had planned to grab my rifle from my drop point shortly after, but most of that side of town got locked down. Its quiet, almost enough to get out, but theres one vehicle lingering.
Roommate: Why?
Robinson: Why did I do it?
Roommate: Yeah
Robinson: I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out. If I am able to grab my rifle unseen, I will have left no evidence. Going to attempt to retrieve it again, hopefully they have moved on. I haven’t seen anything about them finding it.
Robinson: I am still ok my love, but am stuck in orem for a little while longer yet. Shouldn’t be long until I can come home, but I gotta grab my rifle still. To be honest I had hoped to keep this secret till I died of old age. I am sorry to involve you.
Roommate: You weren’t the one who did it right????
Robinson: I am, I’m sorry
Roommate: I thought they caught the person?
Robinson: No, they grabbed some crazy old dude, then interrogated someone in similar clothing. I had planned to grab my rifle from my drop point shortly after, but most of that side of town got locked down. Its quiet, almost enough to get out, but theres one vehicle lingering.
Roommate: Why?
Robinson: Why did I do it?
Roommate: Yeah
Robinson: I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out. If I am able to grab my rifle unseen, I will have left no evidence. Going to attempt to retrieve it again, hopefully they have moved on. I haven’t seen anything about them finding it.
Robinson allegedly told the roommate that he had been planning the attack for about a week, and he was worried because he hadn’t been able to retrieve his grandfather’s rifle.
He also discussed engraving bullets and told his roommate to “delete this exchange.”
Kirk was shot and killed on September 10
Image credits: Scott G Winterton-Pool/Getty Images
Robinson then sent a message confirming he was going to turn himself in, expressed worry for his roommate, and then told them to lawyer up and stay silent if questioned by police.
The charge document says that Robinson’s DNA was found on the trigger, other parts of the rifle, the fired cartridge casing, two of the three unfired cartridges, and the towel the rifle was found wrapped in.
It details how Robinson’s mother recognized him from released FBI photos and spoke to his father, who agreed it looked like Robinson and thought the rifle looked like a gift his son had been given.
When the father contacted Robinson and asked for a photo of the rifle, he didn’t respond to the text message but they spoke on the phone.
Image credits: Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune/Getty Images
The charge document alleges that Robinson implied he was the shooter and suggested he was going to take his own life, but was convinced to go to his parents’ home.
There, the document says, Robinson was persuaded to speak to a family friend who is a retired deputy sheriff and convinced to turn himself in.
The family friend told police that he advised Robinson to bring all the evidence with him to avoid a police search of his parents’ home.
Robinson was charged with one count of aggravated murder, one count of discharging a firearm, one count of committing a violent offense in the presence of a child, two counts of obstructing justice, and two counts of witness tampering.
He is being held without bail.