Orem • Conservative political commentator Charlie Kirk was shot and killed Wednesday during a speaking appearance at Utah Valley University.
“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” President Donald Trump posted Wednesday afternoon on his social media platform Truth Social.
“No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie,” the president said. “He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”
At a news conference on UVU’s campus Wednesday afternoon, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said, “I want to be very clear that this is a political assassination.”
“We are endowed by our creator with certain unalienable rights,” Cox continued. “The first one of those is life. And today, a life was taken.”
Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason said Wednesday afternoon that law enforcement had apprehended two people — one as a person of interest, the other for suspicion of obstruction of justice. By the evening, though, his department announced that “there are no current ties to the shooting with either of these individuals” and that the shooter was still at large.
Mason told reporters that “the only information we have on the suspect, the possible shooter, is taken from closed-circuit TV here on campus. … We do have that we’re analyzing it, but it is security camera footage, so you can kind of guess what the quality of that is. We do know [they were] dressed in all dark clothing. We don’t have a much better description.”
Mason said the shot came from a long distance, potentially a rooftop.
Warning: The video below includes a brief view of the shooting. Viewer discretion advised.
“The investigation is ongoing, but I want to make it crystal clear right now to whoever did this, we will find you, we will try you, and we will hold you accountable to the furthest extent of the law,” said Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican, at the news conference.
“I just want to remind people that we still have the death penalty here in the state of Utah,” the governor added.
Kirk was shot while answering a series of questions from an attendee at his event — his university appearances are typically in a question-and-answer debate format.
That question, although partially inaudible, referenced mass shootings that have become commonplace in America.
When asked whether law enforcement had identified or questioned the person who asked those questions during the event, UVU Police Chief Jeff Long simply said, “We do not have that at this moment.”
Aubrey Laitsch, public relations manager for Kirk-founded Turning Point USA, said, “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 UVU.
“May he be received into the merciful arms of our loving Savior who suffered and died for Charlie,” Laitsch added. ”We ask that everyone keep his family and loved ones in your prayers. We ask that you please respect their privacy and dignity in this time."
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Crowd members run after a gunshot was heard at Utah Valley University in Orem, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. Officials say conservative commentator Charlie Kirk was shot while hosting an event on the campus.
When the shot rang out, attendees immediately scrambled for cover.
“We do know there was a shot fired from the top of the Losee Center,” UVU said in a statement. “Someone appeared to be at the top of that building or somewhere inside.”
(Christopher Cherrington | The Salt Lake Tribune)
At around 2 p.m. Wednesday afternoon, UVU officials and emergency responders were telling anyone left on campus to secure in place. Law enforcement officers dressed in SWAT gear were sweeping campus buildings and going “room by room.”
Among them were U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents wearing tactical gear.
‘We all just ran’
Immediately after the shooting, audience members screamed and fell to the ground, with some attendees lying on top of others to protect them.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) People run after a gunshot was fired during an appearance by Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University in Orem on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025.
“Where is my son?” a woman in the crowd yelled.
After a few seconds, attendees began to run from the scene, leaving bags and personal items behind in the search for cover.
University officials said UVU camps will be closed through Sunday, and classes, campus events and administrative operations are also being suspended during that time.
UVU said on its police website that it “complies with state law with regard to weapons on campus.” It states that concealed carry is legal on campus, with a state-issued permit.
It added: “As an institution, UVU respects the right of its students and others to legally carry a concealed firearm under those parameters, as outlined by state law.”
Scott Trotter, a UVU spokesperson, told The Tribune that state and federal law enforcement officials have taken over the investigation.
“We are coordinating with the FBI and the state and all the police departments down here,” he said.
Kirk, Trotter said, also had eight security officials, and the UVU police department also staffed the event.
Witnesses said they heard a loud bang and saw what appeared to be blood on Kirk.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Charlie Kirk throws hats to the crowd after arriving at Utah Valley University in Orem on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025.
“I was in the very back of the crowd, so I didn’t see much, but there was just a gunshot, super loud. It just echoed through the whole place. And then it just got silent, and then after a couple seconds, everyone just booked it, like, fled everywhere, all different directions toward all the doors,” UVU student Brynlee Holms said. “And then I started running. I got trampled actually a little bit. Luckily, someone was kind enough to help me back up, but we all just ran, I didn’t even know where I was going.”
Holms said she was told to go into the Student Success Center, where people hid in a back office for about 20 minutes until they were informed it was safe to go.
“I just heard a loud noise, and I saw blood come from his [Kirk’s} neck. … I just saw him stop for a second and then fall over,” UVU student Kyah Bahr said. “And then everybody, like, jumps to the ground and my sister, she grabs me and pulls me onto the ground.”
UVU student Dallin Gilbertson was standing near the front when he said someone asked Kirk about how many mass shootings have taken place.
“And then, like, 30 seconds after, … I hear the gunshot,” Gilbertson said. “Then everyone’s freaking out, because we hear a gunshot, and then we run out [and] people are crying.”