OREM, UTAH (AZFamily/AP) — Charlie Kirk, the CEO and co-founder of the Arizona-based conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, was assassinated on Wednesday during one of his trademark public appearances at a college in Utah. He was 31.
In a video statement posted on Truth Social, President Donald Trump said he was filled with “grief and anger” to the killing of the high-profile political figure.
“This is a dark moment for America,” the president said. “It’s long past time for all Americans and the media to confront the facts that these are the tragic consequences of demonizing those whom you disagree.”
Authorities in Utah said they had a person of interest who was talking to them. FBI Director Kash Patel later posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the “subject” was released.
Investigators said the man taken into custody right after the shooting was later arrested on obstruction of justice charges.
Utah authorities said the shooter wore dark clothing and fired from a roof on campus some distance away.
“Going to be wearing all black. Black long gun, black tactical helmet, a black mask Possibly wearing a tactical vest and jeans,” said the 911 dispatch audio obtained by CBS News.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox has called Kirk’s shooting “a dark day for our state. It’s a tragic day for our nation. Charlie Kirk was first and foremost a husband and a dad to young children. He was also very much politically involved. And that’s why he was here on campus.”
The FBI created a digital media tip line for information regarding the shooting. For more, click/tap here.
Kirk died doing what made him a potent political force — rallying the right on a college campus, this time at Utah Valley University.
His shooting is one of an escalating number of attacks on political figures, from the assassination of a Democratic state lawmaker and her husband in Minnesota to last summer’s shooting of Trump, that have riled the nation.
Trump announced Kirk’s death on his social media site, Truth Social: “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie.”
Vice President JD Vance shared the President’s post, stating, “Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord.”
Turning Point USA shared the following statement on Kirk’s death:
It is with a heavy heart that we confirm that Charles James Kirk has been murdered by a gunshot that took place during Turning Point USA’s “The American Comeback Tour” campus event at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025.
May he be received into the merciful arms of our loving Savior, who suffered and died for Charlie.
We ask that everyone keep his family and loved ones in your prayers.
We ask that you please respect their privacy and dignity at this time.”
A video captured at the event showed Kirk, who lived in Scottsdale, bleeding heavily after being shot in his neck.
Videos posted to social media from Utah Valley University show Kirk speaking into a handheld microphone while sitting under a white tent emblazoned with the slogans “The American Comeback” and “Prove Me Wrong.”
Videos show a single shot rang out and Kirk can be seen reaching up with his right hand as a large volume of blood gushes from the left side of his neck at the Sorensen Center courtyard at UVU. Stunned spectators are heard gasping and screaming before people start to run away. Authorities said the shooter was likely on the roof and fired one shot in a “targeted attack.”
The campus has since evacuated and the university remains closed. Classes are canceled until further notice.
After the shooting, armed officers walked around the neighborhood bordering the campus, knocked on doors and asked for information about the suspect.
Kirk was speaking at a debate hosted by his nonprofit political organization. Immediately before the shooting, Kirk was taking questions from an audience member about mass shootings and gun violence.
“Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the last 10 years?” an audience member asked. Kirk responded: “Too many.”
The questioner followed up: “Do you know how many mass shooters there have been in America over the last 10 years?”
“Counting or not counting gang violence?” Kirk asked.
Then a single shot rang out.
The event had been met with divided opinions on campus. An online petition calling for university administrators to bar Kirk from appearing received nearly 1,000 signatures. The university issued a statement last week citing First Amendment rights and affirming its “commitment to free speech, intellectual inquiry, and constructive dialogue.”
Last week, Kirk posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, images of news clips showing his visit to Utah colleges, sparking controversy. He wrote, “What’s going on in Utah?”
Arizona reaction
Turning Point is headquartered in Phoenix. Supporters began laying flowers and hanging up red “Make America Great Again” hats outside of the organization’s headquarters near 48th Street and Baseline Road.
Retiree Alex Lane said news of Kirk’s killing prompted him to head to the organization’s headquarters and hand the organization a $10,000 check.
“I hope and trust that they’re going to continue with the message that he had,” Lane, 54, told The Associated Press while standing outside the headquarters. Lane said he was a follower of Kirk’s and had given to Turning Point before, but never such a large sum.
“It’s a huge loss, there’s no question about it,” Lane said. “But I think the important thing for people to understand is that (Kirk’s message) is going to continue. The assassin didn’t stop it. If anything, I think it will bring more attention to his message.”
Flags were also flown half-staff outside the building. The American flags on the White House roof and the north and south lawns have been lowered to half staff in Kirk’s honor, as ordered by President Trump.
Trump and a host of Republican and Democratic elected officials decried the shooting and offered prayers for Kirk on social media. Arizona lawmakers and leaders also offered condolences to Kirk’s family, while others condemned the deadly attack.
Rise in political violence
The shooting comes amid a spike in political violence in the United States across all parts of the ideological spectrum. The attacks include the assassination of a Minnesota state lawmaker and her husband at their house in June, the firebombing of a Colorado parade to demand Hamas release hostages, and a fire set at the house of Pennsylvania’s governor, who is Jewish, in April. The most notorious of these events is the shooting of President Trump during a campaign rally last year.
Last year, Kirk visited the East Valley alongside Donald Trump Jr. for a political rally. Following the rally, a Desert Vista High School teacher was arrested for making online threats toward Kirk and Trump Jr.
Zeal for challenging liberals
Turning Point was founded in suburban Chicago in 2012 by Kirk, then 18, and William Montgomery, a Tea Party activist, to proselytize on college campuses for low taxes and limited government. It was not an immediate success.
But Kirk’s zeal for confronting liberals in academia eventually won over an influential set of conservative financiers.
Despite early misgivings, Turning Point enthusiastically backed Trump after he clinched the GOP nomination in 2016. Kirk served as a personal aide to Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, during the general election campaign.
Soon, Kirk was a regular presence on cable TV, where he leaned into the culture wars and heaped praise on the then-president. Trump and his son were equally effusive and often spoke at Turning Point conferences.
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