Fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk puts Utah Valley University's security under scrutiny [View all]

Source: ABC News

September 15, 2025, 5:14 AM


The fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk has put Utah Valley University (UVU) under scrutiny as security experts said the location of the stage for the outdoor event where the conservative commentator was targeted was particularly vulnerable, and questioned why no metal detectors were in place and bags seemingly were not checked.

More than 3,000 people were on hand Wednesday as the 31-year-old Kirk, CEO and co-founder of the conservative grassroots organization Turning Point USA, spoke in an open-air courtyard on the Orem, Utah, campus, which is at the bottom of a bowl-shaped area surrounded by buildings, law enforcement officials said.

A gunman fired the deadly shot at Kirk with a high-powered bolt-action rifle from the rooftop of a campus building a substantial distance from where Kirk was speaking, hitting him in the throat, officials said.

The suspect in the shooting, identified as 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, was arrested on Friday night after his father recognized him from surveillance images and video released by investigators, authorities said. "This is a police chief's nightmare," Chief Jeff Long of the Utah Valley University campus police department said at a news conference on Wednesday.

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/fatal-shooting-charlie-kirk-puts-utah-valley-universitys/story?id=125474742