On Tuesday, a Utah judge will decide whether there is enough evidence to try the man accused of killing Charlie Kirk for aggravated murder, a charge that could make him eligible for the death penalty.

The state court hearing follows a five-day presentation in July, during which prosecutors asserted they had amassed "overwhelming" evidence that Tyler Robinson killed the conservative activist while he was addressing an outdoor gathering on a college campus.

The 23-year-old defendant surrendered himself a day after the shooting at Utah Valley University last September.

He has yet to enter a plea, and his legal counsel has not proposed alternative explanations for Kirk’s death.

Instead, their efforts have centered on preventing the case from advancing to trial and seeking to have the death penalty removed from consideration.

Heavy security surrounded the Fourth Judicial District Courthouse in Provo, where Kirk's parents, Robert and Kathryn Kirk, entered arm in arm before the hearing.

Erika Kirk was also expected in court but did not use a public entrance.

A few local members of Kirk's organization, Turning Point USA, arrived with signs expressing their support for Erika Kirk but were told by security that they could not have them on the court property.

District Judge Tony Graf retains the discretion to refer the case to trial on the lesser charge of murder, which carries a minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum of life imprisonment, according to Steve Burton, director of the Utah Defense Attorney Association.

Alternatively, Graf could dismiss the charges against Robinson, in which case prosecutors would retain the option to refile them.

A key factor in charging aggravated murder is whether the shooting endangered others.

Attorneys will deliver their final arguments on Tuesday, concluding an unusually long preliminary hearing, and Graf plans to issue his decision from the bench, according to state courts spokesperson Tania Mashburn.

The debate is likely to center on whether prosecutors in Utah County possess sufficient evidence to substantiate the more severe charge of aggravated murder.

In recent court filings, defense attorneys contended that the shooter “hit the intended target” and posed no threat to others.

Prosecutors, however, asserted that numerous individuals were situated within a “zone of danger” surrounding Kirk when he was struck from a rooftop over 400 feet (122 meters) away.

Robinson also faces the possibility of a harsher sentence if prosecutors can prove that he targeted Kirk because of his political beliefs.

Before his death, Kirk and the organization he co-founded, Turning Point USA, energized the conservative youth vote to help President Donald Trump win a second term.

Prosecutors have argued that an engraved bullet found in the suspected murder weapon indicates Kirk was singled out due to the defendant's perception of his political views.

The inscription “Hey Facist! CATCH!” constitutes an “overt political reference,” as they contended in court documents.

A handwritten note that prosecutors allege Robinson left for his romantic partner read in part, “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I took it.”

They also allege that Robinson wrote in a text message about Kirk: “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.”

Robinson’s legal team has contended that the prosecution lacks sufficiently compelling evidence to establish a political motive.

In July, investigators presented DNA analyses that they said linked Robinson to the suspected murder weapon—a bolt-action rifle with one spent round—and to a tool he allegedly used to engrave the bullet cartridges.

Robinson's reported romantic partner, Lance Twiggs, told investigators in a recorded interview that Robinson said the day after Kirk was killed that "he wishes he hadn't done it."

Later that same day — and only about an hour before turning himself in — Robinson posted "it was me at UVU yesterday" in an online chat room, according to investigators.

Defense attorneys disputed the reliability of the DNA evidence and were unsuccessful in their attempt to block the public release of the Twiggs interview, cautioning that prosecutors would present it as an admission of guilt.

In the interview, Twiggs said he had never heard Robinson mention Kirk before the shooting.