A judge in Utah is set to determine Tuesday whether the local prosecuting team should be barred from handling the case against the man accused of killing conservative figure Charlie Kirk, after it emerged that the daughter of a senior prosecutor witnessed the shooting.
Earlier this month, Utah County District Court Judge Tony Graf convened a hearing to consider a motion filed by attorneys for Tyler Robinson, who argue that lawyers from the Utah County Attorney’s Office should be taken off the case due to a potential conflict of interest.
According to the defense, the 18-year-old daughter of a high-ranking prosecutor was present when the fatal shooting occurred on September 10.
They contend that the office’s move to pursue capital punishment less than a week after the killing reflected a “strong emotional reaction” by Chad Grunander, a deputy county attorney whose daughter notified him of the shooting through a series of text messages.
Grunander took the stand and rejected the claim that his daughter’s involvement influenced the office’s decision. He testified that prosecutors sought the death penalty only after concluding that the evidence against Robinson was strong enough to support it.
“We felt there’s simply no conflict here,” Grunander told the Provo, Utah, court during a Feb. 3 hearing.
Court proceedings and filings have not addressed who would assume responsibility for prosecuting the case if Judge Graf rules that Grunander and his colleagues must step aside. Defense attorneys have previously asked that the Utah Attorney General’s Office respond to their allegations of a conflict, rather than the Utah County Attorney’s Office.
Robinson, 22, had been training to work as an electrician. Authorities allege that he fired a single shot from a rooftop, killing Kirk while the conservative activist was engaged in a debate with students at Utah Valley University in Orem as part of a nationwide campus tour.
Kirk was widely recognized for energizing young voters who contributed to President Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 election. His killing, carried out before a large crowd, underscored what many have described as a disturbing rise in political violence across the country.
Robinson faces charges of aggravated murder, tampering with a witness, and obstruction of justice. He is not expected to enter a plea until after a preliminary hearing that is currently anticipated to take place in mid-May.
{Matzav.com}
The family of Nancy Guthrie, the missing 84-year-old mother of “Today” show anchor Savannah Guthrie, announced Tuesday that they will offer a reward of up to $1 million for information leading to her recovery or an arrest.
In a tearful video message 24 days after Nancy Guthrie disappeared, Savannah Guthrie said the family realized their mother may no longer be alive but still hoped to bring her home. Guthrie pleaded for anyone with morsels of information to come forward so the family “can either celebrate a glorious miraculous homecoming or celebrate the beautiful, brave and courageous and noble life that she has lived.”
“We need to know where she is,” she said in the video. “We need her to come home.”
The high-profile case has drawn intense interest from people across the world who have followed closely as investigators sought to uncover evidence, news reports surfaced about purported ransom notes, and Savannah Guthrie and her siblings pleaded for help. It took nearly two weeks for federal officials to describe a suspect they were pursuing. Even then, after expansive searches through the remote Catalina Foothills neighborhood of Tucson where Nancy Guthrie resided, there were no signs of her.
Savannah Guthrie said Tuesday that her family would also donate $500,000 to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, which helps families put in the same position as them. On Instagram, Guthrie wrote that the reward would be subject to the same criteria as the FBI’s $100,000 reward, paid for information that leads to Nancy Guthrie’s recovery or an arrest and conviction of anyone involved in her disappearance.
“We’re hoping that the attention that has been given to our mom and our family will extend to all the families like ours who are in need,” Savannah Guthrie said.
Guthrie, 84, spent the evening before she disappeared at the home of her daughter, Annie, for a game night. She returned home around 9:45 p.m., Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said at a news conference.
The next day – Feb. 1 – her family realized she was missing and called 911 around noon. A sprawling search ensued.
By nightfall, word had spread that the mother of the “Today” show host had disappeared, kicking off a storm of media coverage. In several Instagram videos, Savannah Guthrie and her two siblings pleaded with their mother’s captor and said they would pay for her return. They also asked the public to pray and to report any useful information to law enforcement. They told their mother they loved her.
The White House and President Donald Trump pledged support for the investigation. Thousands of calls flooded the FBI’s tip line. But the case remained at a standstill.
Then, on Feb. 10, the FBI and the Pima County Sheriff’s Office revealed they had recovered footage from Guthrie’s doorbell camera. They released photos and video showing an “armed individual” wearing a ski mask and backpack walking up to the front door. That night, the sheriff’s office said they had detained and questioned someone in the case but released the man soon after. The office later told reporters in an emailed update that it had executed two search warrants and was processing evidence from those searches but did not specify where they happened.
Two days later, officials described the person seen in the doorbell camera footage as a suspect – a man around 5 feet 9 inches tall with an average build. He wore a black 25-liter “Ozark Trail Hiker Pack” backpack in the video from the doorbell camera, according to the FBI.
After that description went public, tips kept pouring in. Authorities again searched the area around Guthrie’s home and recovered additional evidence, including multiple gloves that were sent for lab analysis. On Tuesday, the sheriff’s office said that there were no DNA matches found in federal records for a sample from the gloves found closest to Guthrie’s house, about two miles away.
Investigators are also attempting to locate Guthrie’s pacemaker, according to the sheriff’s department, and are working with Walmart, which sells the same model of backpack the suspect was seen wearing. Detectives canvassed local businesses to show owners the doorbell camera footage in case someone recognized the suspect.
Over the weekend, as the investigation neared its third week, Savannah Guthrie made another plea.
“It is never too late to do the right thing, and we are here,” she said in the video, directly addressing a possible captor. “We believe, and we believe in the essential goodness of every human being, and it’s never too late.”
Days earlier, Savannah Guthrie published another post on Instagram. But instead of an address to her mother’s potential abductors or a request for help, this one was a home video.
In the footage, Nancy Guthrie and her then-young children could be seen picking flowers and giggling.
“Our lovely mom,” Savannah Guthrie wrote in the caption. “We will never give up on her. Thank you for your prayers and hope.”
(c) The Washington Post
[Photos and videos below.] An Israel-to-JFK flight that was unexpectedly diverted to Detroit turned into a powerful display of achdus and chesed, as members of the Detroit Jewish community mobilized within hours to provide passengers with kosher food and emergency assistance.
The flight, originally scheduled to land at JFK Airport in New York, was rerouted to Detroit due to unforeseen circumstances, leaving dozens of passengers stranded far from their intended destination. With little notice and limited airport food options that met kosher standards, the situation quickly became challenging for the frum travelers.
Enter Daniel Greenbaum, owner of Metropolitan Dry Cleaners, who immediately began coordinating a community response. Working together with the owners of Jerusalem Pizza and members of Hatzalah Detroit, Greenbaum helped organize a large-scale food delivery to the airport to ensure that every passenger in need would be taken care of.
Within a short time, cars were packed and dispatched to the airport loaded with an extraordinary amount of food and supplies. The shipment included 65 large pizza pies, 8 gluten-free pies, and several vegan and cheeseless pies to accommodate a range of dietary needs. In addition, volunteers prepared and delivered 150 individually plated orders of fries and 50 tuna and egg sandwiches.
Several cases of water and Snapple were also included to make sure passengers had drinks after hours of unexpected delay.
Community members described the effort as seamless and inspiring. Volunteers worked quickly to prepare, pack, and transport the food, transforming what could have been a stressful and uncomfortable ordeal into a moment of genuine ahavas Yisroel.
Hatzalah Detroit members were also on hand to assist with any medical or emergency needs, ensuring that passengers had access not only to food but to support and reassurance as well.
What began as a routine international flight disruption became an unforgettable example of how a Jewish community—no matter the city—steps up instantly when fellow Yidden are in need.
Passengers expressed deep appreciation for the outpouring of support, many noting that after a long and uncertain travel interruption, the sight of cars arriving filled with hot kosher food was both comforting and uplifting.
https://matzav.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/VIDEO-2026-02-23-23-07-29.mp4 https://matzav.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/VIDEO-2026-02-23-23-07-29_1.mp4
{Matzav.com}
[Videos below.] The Police Benevolent Association is urging authorities to make arrests and pursue charges after a group was filmed throwing snowballs at NYPD officers Monday in Lower Manhattan.
The incident occurred during a pre-arranged snowball fight gathering at Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. Video circulating online shows several individuals trailing uniformed officers, shouting at them and hurling snowballs as the officers made their way toward a police van.
Police officials confirmed that the encounter is under review. NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch condemned the conduct in a post on social media, writing, in part, “The behavior depicted is disgraceful, and it is criminal. Our detectives are investigating this matter.”
Staten Island Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis also spoke out, calling for public officials to respond. “This is disgraceful. @NYCMayor and every elected official in our city should denounce this juvenile attack on our #NYPD. Back the blue and hold those who disrespect them accountable.”
The Police Benevolent Association said those involved should be identified and charged, arguing that attacks on officers — even if involving snowballs — cannot be dismissed as harmless behavior. Detectives are continuing to investigate the incident.
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