Orem, Utah (AP) – Assassinated sniper Charlie Kirk Authorities said Thursday after disclosing that they had recovered the high-powered rifle Thursday, authorities believed to have jumped off the roof and fled to their neighborhood.
The shooter appears to be “college years,” and is believed to have blended into the university campus where Kirk was shot, authorities said they have investigated the latest acts of political violence that befall America.
“I can say this was a targeted event,” said Robert Balls, the top FBI agent in Salt Lake City.
The crowd will react after Charlie Kirk, CEO and co-founder of conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, was shot dead at Utah Valley University on Wednesday, September 10, 2025 in Orem, Utah. (Deseret News via Tess Crowley/AP)
Kirk, a close ally of President Donald Trump, was killed by gunshots from the far rooftop of the Utah Valley University campus, where he spoke on Wednesday. Federal, state and local governments worked what they called “multiple aggressive crime scenes.”
“This is a dark day for our state. It’s a tragic day for our country.” Utah Governor Spencer Cox I said on Wednesday. “I want to make it very clear that this is a political assassination.”
Trump announced Thursday that he would award Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom after he died.
The two were taken into custody Wednesday, but neither of them has been decided to lead to shootings and both have been released, public security officials said.
The shooting situation attracted new attention Escalating threats of political violence The US says it has been reduced across the ideological spectrum over the past few years. The assassination caused bipartisan condemnation, but it took into account the national approach to prevent fatal violence from appearing as deadly violence.
A video posted on Utah Valley University’s social media shows Kirk talking to a handheld microphone and sitting under a white tent decorated with the slogan “American comeback” and “Proof Me Wrong.” A shot rings and Kirk reaches out with his right hand as blood gushs out from the left side of his neck. Surprised audiences took their breath and screamed before people could escape.
Croewley to Crowley photographer’s surname – Law enforcement was photographed on Wednesday, September 10th, 2025 by Charlie Kirk, CEO and co-founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA. (Deseret News via Tess Crowley/AP)
Vice President J.D. Vice President J.D. Vance and his wife, Usha, were scheduled to visit with Kirk’s family in Salt Lake City on Thursday. According to those who are familiar with Vance’s plans but are not allowed to talk publicly about them, Vance will visit Utah instead of participating Outdoor ceremony commemorating September 11th In New York.
Vance recorded an X through Vance’s Senate run in 2017, dating back to his first message in 2017, and posted memories of X praying after hearing the shooting. Kirk played a pivotal role in establishing a second Trump administration, Vance wrote.
“Many of the success we had in this administration will trace directly to Charlie’s ability to organize and convene,” writes Vance. “He didn’t help win in 2024, he supported staff across the government.”
Kirk was asking questions about gun violence.
Kirk was speaking at Sorensen Center Courtyard on campus at a discussion hosted by his nonprofit political youth organization, Arizona-based Turning Point USA. Just before the shooting, he was asking the audience questions about gun violence.
“Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the past decade?” asked. Kirk replied, “Too many.”
The questioner followed up as follows:
“Are you counting or not counting gang violence?” Kirk asked.
Then the shot rang.
The shooter, who Cox pledged, was held responsible in a state with the death penalty, was fired from the roof of a building a little further away, wearing dark clothing.
Madison Latin only looked at a few dozen feet from Kirk’s left when he heard the bullet hit him.
“Blood is falling and dripping down. You seem very scary, not just for his own safety,” she said.
She said she saw people fall to the ground in a creepy silence that was immediately pierced by screams. She and the others ran. Some fell and were trampled down by the Stampede.
She said she cried when Latin later found out that Kirk had died.
Charlie Kirk speaks Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, on Wednesday, September 10, 2025 before being shot during a visit to Turning Point.
Trump calls Kirk “martist for truth”
About 3,000 people were in attendance, according to a statement from the Utah Department of Public Safety. Six officers were working at the event at the university’s police station, along with details of Kirk’s own security, authorities said.
Trump announced Kirk’s death on social media, celebrating the 31-year-old co-founder and CEO Turning Point As “great and even legendary.” He then released a video calling Kirk “a martian for truth and freedom.”
Utah Valley University said the campus was evacuated after filming and will be closed until Monday.
Meanwhile, armed officers roamed the neighbourhood adjacent to campus, knocked on the door and sought information residents may have in the shooting. The helicopter rang overhead.
Wednesday’s event, billed as the first stop on Kirk’s “American Comeback Tour,” produced a response for the polarized campus. An online petition seeking university administrators to appear in Kirk has received nearly 1,000 signatures. Last week, the university issued a statement citing First Amendment rights and affirming its “commitment to freedom of speech, intellectual investigation and constructive dialogue.”
Last week, Kirk posted an X-picture in a news clip showing his visit was causing controversy. He wrote, “What’s going on in Utah?”
Charlie Kirk will hand over his hat before speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, on Wednesday, September 10th, 2025.
Condemnation from the entire political spectrum
The shooting was drawn Fast bipartisan condemnation When Democratic officials joined Trump, he lowered the flag to half the price, issued a presidential declaration, and issued Kirk’s other Republican allies condemning violence.
“Charlie Kirk’s murder breaks my heart. My deepest sympathy lies in his wife, two young children and friends,” said former Democrat Gabriel Guiffold. He was injured in a 2011 shooting In her Arizona area.
In a joint statement, young Democrats from Connecticut and young Republicans from Connecticut called the shooting “unacceptable.”
“We reject all forms of political violence,” they said. “There is no place in our country for such conduct, regardless of political discrepancy.”
The shootings seemed poised to become part of a surge in political violence that touched various ideologies and representatives of both major political parties. Included in attacks Assassination of Minnesota Senators Her husband at her house in June The Colorado Parade bombardment In June, Hamas demands that hostages be released A fire broke out in the Pennsylvania Governor’s homeI was a Jew in April. The most infamous of these events is Trump fired during a Pennsylvania campaign rally last year.
Kirk stood up against the liberals.
Turning Point was established in 2012 by Chicago suburb Kirk (18 at the time) and Tea Party activist William Montgomery to convert on university campuses for low tax and limited government. It wasn’t a success right away.
But Kirk’s enthusiasm for standing up against liberals in academia ultimately outperformed a set of influential, conservative investors.
Despite the early concerns, Turning Point He enthusiastically supported Trump after he decided to nominate the GOP in 2016. Kirk served as an aide to Donald Trump Jr. during the general election campaign.
Soon, Kirk was a regular on cable television, where he leaned against the culture war and praised the then president. Trump and his son were equally enthusiastic, often talking at Turning Point meetings.
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Richer and Sherman reported from Washington. Nicholas Riccardi, author of the Associated Press in Denver. Michael Beezecker, Brian Slodisco, Lindsay Whitehurst, and Michelle L. Price. Jesse Bedain of Orem, Utah. Harry Golden of Seattle and Meg Kinnard of Chapin, South Carolina contributed to this report.
