Family of Charlie Kirk Files Claim Against Utah Valley University

The family of conservative activist Charlie Kirk has submitted a notice of claim, citing a “series of stunning failures and reckless decisions” by Utah Valley University (UVU) that allegedly contributed to Kirk being fatally shot while he was speaking on campus last year.

Filed on September 9, just before the one-year anniversary of Kirk’s death, the notice argues that his assassination was “entirely preventable.”

“Charlie Kirk was violently and publicly assassinated while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University (UVU),” stated Brett Parkinson, attorney for the Kirk family, in a statement. “His murder was entirely preventable and, in fact, would not have happened had the State of Utah and UVU followed through on their stated security promises, including protecting the rooftops surrounding the quad where Charlie was speaking.”

The notice names multiple parties, including the state of Utah, UVU, the UVU Police Department, Police Chief Jeffrey Long, and former UVU President Astrid Tuminez, among others. Although not an official lawsuit, this claim secures the family’s right to potentially pursue legal action later.

Less than 30 minutes into Kirk’s speaking engagement on Turning Point USA’s “The American Comeback” tour, he was shot in the neck by a bullet fired from a rooftop while addressing a crowd of approximately 3,000 people.

“Through a series of stunning failures and reckless decisions, the UVU Parties created a foreseeable danger to Charlie,” the notice alleged. “Those decisions ultimately rendered Mr. Kirk helpless to the rooftop shooter in an assassination that could have been avoided had the UVU Parties only taken reasonable steps to plan and oversee a safe event.”

The notice claims that UVU police had been specifically warned by Turning Point USA about accessible rooftops near the speaking area, and that the university misrepresented the measures it took to address this security concern.

A student had alerted the organization about the proximity of rooftops to Kirk’s setup at the Sorensen Student Center, and when the information was shared with Chief Long, he allegedly assured, “I got you covered.”

Highlighting the increased importance of rooftop security in today’s political climate, the notice cites several instances of political violence leading up to the Turning Point event.

“Mr. Kirk’s visit occurred when political violence had hit a fever pitch,” it stated, mentioning that President Trump was shot by a rooftop sniper during the 2024 campaign, and other heinous acts of violence against politicians were noted as warnings that should not have been ignored.

Additionally, the notice claimed that there wasn’t any real-time CCTV monitoring during the event, which is particularly alarming since later footage showed the shooter moving before the attack. It also stated that no drones were deployed to surveil rooftops and that the UVU police lacked a documented security plan for the occasion.

In the aftermath of the shooting, UVU announced plans for a “comprehensive independent review” of the incident by an external organization.

“We believe the findings of the comprehensive, third-party independent review will offer valuable insights on how college campuses can improve response and preparedness moving forward,” Tuminez said at the time, indicating that the findings would be used to enhance safety practices at UVU and across Utah higher education.