OAN Staff Blake Wolf and Brooke Mallory
3:09 PM – Wednesday, October 1, 2025
Charlie Kirk’s accused assassin, Tyler Robinson, has expanded his legal team with two top defense attorneys, including one who represented Joseph “Lyle” Menendez in 1993 and serial killer Richard Ramirez.
In addition to his Utah-based attorney, Kathryn Nester, 22-year-old Robinson has enlisted two California attorneys — Michael Burt and Richard Novak.
Burt, a veteran lawyer with nearly 50 years of experience, previously defended Lyle Menendez during the brothers’ trial in 1993, prior to Mark Geragos joining the legal team, as well as notorious serial killer Richard Ramirez, also known as the “Night Stalker.” Lyle Menendez, along with his brother Erik, killed their parents in 1989 and were found guilty of murder in 1996.
In addition, Burt defended Eric Robert Rudolph, the Olympic Park bomber responsible for the 1996 Atlanta Olympic bombing.
The second recent addition to Robinson’s legal team, Novak, is also a prominent criminal defense attorney based in California who “has represented defendants, witnesses, and individuals under investigation by law enforcement and other government agencies for the past two decades,” according to his website.
Both Novak and Burt have been designated a federal “learned counsel,” a credential reserved for attorneys qualified to handle capital cases in federal court.
Additionally, Nester, the lead attorney in the case representing Robinson, was involved in the Obama administration through her role on the National Steering Committee for the Clemency Project. This initiative claimed to coordinate legal support for individuals seeking clemency.
Robinson attended his hearing virtually on Monday, where Nester requested a 30-day continuance for the waiver hearing to allow additional time to review the case evidence.
“Until we can kinda get our heads around exactly what we’re dealing with and how much we need to process, it’s going to be difficult for us to give you a reasonable expectation of when we will be ready to do the prelim,” Nester told Judge Tony Graf Jr.
It is currently unclear whether the Department of Justice (DOJ) is going to bring its own case against Robinson. However, in an interview with ABC News on September 15th, Bondi asserted that “left-wing radicals” were responsible for Kirk’s death and she emphasized that “they will be held accountable.”
The court has declared Robinson indigent, meaning he lacks the financial means to hire his own lawyers. Therefore, Utah County hired the three attorneys to represent him, estimating that $750,000 would be spent on court-appointed lawyers. The Utah County Commission approved $1 million toward staffing and legal expenses to support both the prosecution and defense in the case, according to KSL News.
Robinson is accused of assassinating conservative activist and commentator Charlie Kirk on September 10th — as he hosted open debates at Utah Valley University. The accused killer is scheduled to make his next appearance in court on October 30th.
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