Utah prosecutors began presenting their evidence yesterday at the preliminary hearing for Tyler Robinson, who is accused of fatally shooting conservative activist Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University last year.

Why it matters: The weeklong hearing in Provo will help Judge Tony Graf determine whether there's enough evidence to send the case to trial in what could become one of the nation's most-watched criminal cases.

Catch up quick: Robinson, 23, faces one count of aggravated murder, a first-degree felony, along with six additional charges.

• Robinson surrendered after his family identified him in video footage, ending a manhunt that lasted more than a day.
• The state is seeking the death penalty.

Between the lines: Robinson sat next to his attorneys in cuffs wearing a cream-colored shirt.

• Charlie Kirk's widow, Erika, and his parents made their first courtroom appearance yesterday. They were joined by Donald Trump Jr., who was friends with Kirk.

The big picture: Graf briefly recoiled while watching a video clip showing the moment Kirk was shot.

State of play: Prosecutors' first witness, former UVU police officer Chris Bagley, who was on duty during the shooting, described what transpired on Sept. 10.

• Bagley said he was assigned to patrol the roof of the Hall of Flags, overlooking the courtyard where Kirk was holding a rally attended by about 3,000 people.
• After hearing the gunshot, Bagley saw Kirk, who was underneath a tent, slump to the left, and chaos ensued as people screamed and fled from the courtyard.
• A suspect, who was later found to not have carried out the shooting, was quickly apprehended.

Bagley said he went down to the courtyard and saw an empty pistol holster on the ground but realized the shot sounded more like it came from a rifle.

• He then made his way to the four-story Losee Center, which had a clear line of sight of Kirk's tent. He requested surveillance footage, which found another person had been on the rooftop.
• "I realized that we probably didn't have our shooter in custody," he said on the stand.

The other side: Robinson's legal team has not entered a plea, but yesterday's hearing offered a glimpse into its defense strategy.

What's next: Prosecutors are expected to call Hull back to the stand on Tuesday, along with other law enforcement witnesses.

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Robinson's preliminary hearing comes after months of arguments over what lawyers can say in and out of the courtroom — and shortly after the judge held a prosecutor in contempt for saying too much.

The big picture: Days after Charlie Kirk's killing at UVU, Judge Graf set strict rules for pretrial publicity, barring lawyers from making out-of-court statements that could "materially prejudice" the proceedings.

Zoom in: In a March filing, Robinson's attorneys cited a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) analysis that couldn't determine whether the bullet that killed Kirk was fired by the rifle Robinson is accused of carrying.

• Some news outlets, starting with British tabloid The Daily Mail, published reports that inaccurately described the bullet and gun as mismatched, declaring the report was exculpatory rather than inconclusive.

Friction point: When asked by reporters about the narrative that Robinson was exonerated, Utah County prosecutor Christopher Ballard didn't just correct details of the ATF finding.

• Ballard added, "We have ample evidence to demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that Tyler Robinson committed this murder."
• That, coming from a prosecutor, went too far, Graf wrote in a late June ruling that found Ballard in contempt.

The other side: Graf rejected Robinson's attorneys' argument that Ballard's statement risked enough prejudice that the death penalty should no longer be an option in the case.

• Instead, Graf said he would consider a larger jury pool and a more detailed questionnaire to try to filter out jurors who may have been prejudiced by Ballard's statements.

Zoom out: Defense attorneys have also argued that President Trump, his administration, Gov. Spencer Cox and other office holders have painted Robinson in such a negative light that media access to the preliminary hearing and potential trial should be tightly controlled to make up for the prejudice caused by those public statements.

• In response, Graf allowed cameras but restricted reporters from bringing laptops or phones into the courtroom.

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Since skygazers began increasingly predicting northern lights displays about two years ago, I've tried and failed — repeatedly — to see them in Utah.

Between the lines: It all depends on what you mean by "see."

Catch up quick: I've roamed the West Desert, stalked the Great Salt Lake and trudged the snowy peaks of Summit County late on a school night, all in hopes of catching a glimpse.

• At best, I'll notice a faint haze on the horizon, whether looking with my eyes or snapping cell phone photos, which famously make the auroras look better than they do IRL.
• Then I'll see everyone else's beautiful images the next morning on Facebook.

Zoom in: Finally, while visiting a fire watch cabin in Montana for the holiday last week, I actually saw them! With my own eyeballs!

• The colors are far more defined in the photos — but the coolest part is seeing the whole sky ripple and pulse with light all around, as if an "Independence Day"-level invasion were about to begin.

The bottom line: It turns out that the best place to see the northern lights is to the north.

Tell a dreamer