Charlie Kirk shooting: What we know
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Conservative political activist Charlie Kirk in Las Vegas on Oct. 24, 2024. Photo: Patrick T. FallonAFP via Getty Images
Conservative activist Charlie Kirk was fatally shot while speaking Wednesday at Utah Valley University.
Here's what we know — and don't know — as of Wednesday night.
The latest: Investigators have not arrested or identified a shooter.
- FBI Director Kash Patel posted on X that "the subject for the horrific shooting" was "now in custody" — but later posted that person had been released.
- Two men were questioned in connection with the shooting. One was released and another was booked into jail on suspicion of obstructing justice but is not suspected of the shooting, per a statement Wednesday night by the Utah Department of Public Safety.
What they're saying: "There is an ongoing investigation and manhunt for the shooter," per the DPS statement.
- Anyone with information is asked to use the tipline at fbi.gov/UtahValleyShooting.
The event: UVU was the first of 15 stops on Kirk's fall semester "American Comeback Tour." He had planned to come to Utah State University Sept. 30.
- Kirk had set up a "prove me wrong" table at a stage on a campus plaza and planned to debate students and other guests, who were waiting for a turn at the mic.
- A crowd of about 3,000 had gathered in the plaza, UVU police chief Jeff Long told reporters.
What preceded the shooting: Kirk had begun to answer a question about transgender Americans and mass shootings when a shot was fired, striking Kirk, according to media reports.
- No one else was reported to have been injured.
The shooter's location: The shot came from the top of the Losee Center, UVU officials told FOX 13.
- That's about 200 yards from where Kirk was speaking.
Security: Six campus police officers worked the event, in addition to Kirk's private security detail, Long said.
- There is "no ongoing threat" on campus and it will remain closed until Sept. 15, according to an alert Wednesday evening.
Guns on campus: Guns may be carried at Utah universities by those with concealed carry permits, under state law. Otherwise, they're generally banned.
Potential motive: Although neither the shooter nor their motive is known, Gov. Spencer Cox called the shooting a "political assassination."
The big picture: Kirk was one of the most popular and influential members of the MAGA media ecosystem.
- As co-founder of Turning Point USA, he was largely credited with mobilizing Gen Z voters in support of President Trump in 2024.
- His podcast, "The Charlie Kirk Show," was a significant platform that often pressured lawmakers to support Trump or face possible primary challenges.
The other side: While Kirk and Turning Point were widely praised by conservatives, liberal critics said his provocative style and rhetoric at times could be anti-Muslim, sexist and transphobic, Axios' Josephine Walker reports.
- A petition to halt his talk at Utah State University gathered nearly 7,000 signatures.
Flashback: Kirk previously spoke at UVU in 2019 with Candace Owens during Turning Point USA's first event at a Utah campus.
- The event drew large crowds of students and protesters. No altercations were reported.
- The university has attracted conservative national figures in the past, including former Vice President Mike Pence and Nikki Haley, the former United Nations ambassador and GOP presidential candidate who ran against Trump last year.
Context: The university is nestled in deep-red Utah County, an 11-minute drive from the better known Brigham Young University, operated by the Church of Jesus-Christ of Latter-day Saints.
- The open-enrollment campus is the largest public university in the state.