Senator Chuck Grassley, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, expressed support for Erika Kirk’s recent call to allow cameras in the courtroom during the trial of her husband’s alleged murderer. Erika Kirk is the widow of Charlie Kirk, a conservative leader who was assassinated.
In remarks delivered on Tuesday, November 4, 2025, Grassley acknowledged Erika Kirk’s appeal and connected it to his own long-standing advocacy for increased transparency in federal courts. “I want to complement Erika Kirk, wife of assassinated conservative leader Charlie Kirk. She has made an emotional appeal to have cameras in the courtroom at the trial of her husband’s murderer. I commend her for this brave plea, because it fits in with a stand I’ve been taking for the last couple of decades,” Grassley said.
Grassley noted that while many state courts allow cameras in their courtrooms, this practice is not required at the federal level. He stated his belief that introducing cameras would increase public understanding and confidence in judicial proceedings: “Courts at both the state and federal level have a massive impact on our daily lives and the lives of generations to come, yet few Americans get the chance to see the nation’s courts in action.”
He added that “Cameras would boost transparency and [help] Americans grow in confidence and understanding of the judiciary if we had cameras in the federal courtrooms.” Grassley referenced resistance from some Supreme Court justices regarding camera access but emphasized his view that transparency should prevail: “Now it’s been maybe a joke that a couple of Supreme Court justices have said having cameras in the Supreme Court would be over their ‘dead body.’ Now I don’t wish anybody at the federal court, whether they’re liberals or conservatives on that court, to pass because of cameras in the courtrooms.”
Concluding his remarks, Grassley reiterated his position: “But I happen to believe that cameras in the federal courts, like state courts, would boost transparency and help Americans grow in confidence and understanding of the judiciary. When pivotal moments in history happen, we shouldn’t be timid in calling for greater transparency that history demands in the federal courts.”
