Editor, News-Register:

I did not expect to find a video of the first court hearing for Tyler Robinson, the man who shot and killed Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10, 2025. Curiosity compelled me to click on it, but I did not have any expectations for what I would see. Some folks in the comments said Tyler appeared empty, soulless, uncaring. Others thought that he may be in denial, sleep deprived, sedated, or wrestling with regrets.

What I saw was a man sitting there, frozen, for whatever reason; whether it be a lack of sleep, sedation, denial, regret, dissociation, or a lack of empathy. I realized that this man, like Charlie Kirk, is also a victim. He’s a man, a human being who was persuaded to drink the Kool-Aid.

This is what the radical news spreading lies, hatred, and vitriol does to people. It convinces them that someone who has an opinion that differs from their own is evil. The brain is feeble, fragile, gullible, and Tyler’s and so many others’ have been subjected to psychological warping by a system that cares only about ratings fueled by outrage, not about the health, knowledge, and well-being of its audience.

Tyler may potentially face the death penalty for his actions. I’ve always erred on the side of believing there is a place for the death penalty. But looking at Tyler now, I’ve been challenged. He’s still a man. And I am sad that he, too, may die.

I am sorry, Tyler, that our system has failed you. You are not a monster. You are a victim who also made bad choices. You could have chosen differently. You could have thought things through. You could have opened your mind. There are so many things I wish you would have done differently. You are responsible for your own choices, and you made awful ones that have destroyed both Charlie’s family and yours. But Jesus already bore your death sentence, praying on that cross, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34) God has already forgiven you.

Now I realize that it is not man’s place to take a life. It was not your place, Tyler, to take Charlie’s life. But it is also not our place to take yours. Whatever the judge and jury decide, I pray that you find Jesus before it’s too late, as He has called you by name, and he weeps for you.

I’m sorry the world failed you, and I am sad that you failed yourself. But what man intended for evil, God will use for good.

From your actions, myself and others have and will develop a deeper understanding of God’s vision for us: that we would strive for peace, love, grace, forgiveness, and faith.

And we can learn how to share that goodness with our fellow man by choosing better than you did at your darkest moment.

Lindsay Edgington

Wheeling