Charlie Kirk is dead after being shot at a Utah college event. What we know

Conservative activist Charlie Kirk died Sept. 10 from a gunshot wound sustained at a Utah Valley University event. He was 31.

FBI Director Kash Patel posted on X^[1] in the evening on Sept. 10, saying a suspect was in custody.

Kirk founded Turning Point USA, a conservative organization focused on young people, and was close^[2] to President Donald Trump and his eldest son Donald Trump Jr. His organization says it sponsors student groups on about 1,800 college^[3] and high school campuses^[4] across the country.

“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead. No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie,” Trump posted Sept. 10 on Truth Social^[5]. “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!”

CNN reported^[6] that Turning Point USA announced Kirk’s death in a note to employees.

“It’s with a heavy heart that we, the Turning Point USA leadership team, write to notify you that early this afternoon, Charlie went to his eternal reward with Jesus Christ in Heaven,” the note read.

Kirk was in Orem, Utah, for his “The American Comeback Tour^[7].” At the time of the shooting, he was speaking to a member of the audience for his “Prove Me Wrong” segment, seated under a tent and facing the outdoor crowd. 

As news coverage unfolded, some witnesses and social media users said Kirk was answering a question about violence by transgender people the moment he was shot. 

Here’s what happened, based on video circulating of the event:

Questioner: “Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the last 10 years?”

Kirk: “Too many.”

(Applause.)

Questioner: “Five is a lot, right? I’m gonna give you, I’m gonna give you some credit. Do you know how many mass shooters there have been in America over the last 10 years?”

Kirk: “Counting or not counting gang violence?”

(Gunshot)

Some people took that information and speculated^[8] about the shooter’s gender identity^[9], although no suspect had been apprehended^[10], or even named, in the immediate aftermath.

PolitiFact covered whether incidents of mass shootings committed by trans people are statistically significant^[11] following rhetoric about the shooter in the Aug. 27 Annunciation Catholic School Mass in Minneapolis. 

Kirk was a top commentator on social media and conservative media, authoring books, publishing a daily podcast and amassing almost 30 million followers across TikTok, Instagram, X, Facebook and YouTube. His stature garnered profiles in The New York Times Magazine^[12] in February and The Deseret News^[13] just days before he was killed. 

PolitiFact fact-checked 17 of Kirk’s comments on the Truth-O-Meter^[14] going back to 2019, covering his skepticism of COVID-19 vaccines, climate change, Ivy League universities and election integrity. He talked about home ownership in a 2024 Republican National Convention speech^[15].

Kirk started Turning Point USA in 2012^[16] when he was 18 years old^[17]. Its website describes^[18] TPUSA as a “a national student movement dedicated to identifying, organizing, and empowering young people to promote the principles of free markets and limited government.” 

The nonprofit collected $85 million^[19] in revenue in 2024, up from $443,859 a decade prior, according to ProPublica^[20]. Kirk also heads a political advocacy nonprofit, Turning Point Action^[21], that brought in over $10 million^[22] in 2023. 

Kirk was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago^[23] but relocated to Arizona in 2018^[24]. TPUSA is also headquartered in Phoenix.

We will continue to cover this breaking story. Send ideas for statements to examine to [email protected]^[25].

PolitiFact staffers Maria Ramirez Uribe, Caryn Baird, Loreben Tuquero and Ellen Hine contributed to this report.