Charlie Kirk Family Now Alleging Reckless Security Failures by UVU

The family of the late Charlie Kirk is now accusing Utah Valley University, where he was speaking at the time of his assassination, of a serious lapse in security; they allege that security was insufficient and that the university was aware of security gaps, in their failure to secure rooftops. Charlie Kirk's accused assassin reportedly fired from a rooftop.

Now the family is pursuing legal action.

Charlie Kirk's family has filed a notice of claim — a precursor to a lawsuit — against Utah Valley University, the state and key individuals involved in campus leadership and security decisions, alleging that their failures led to the Turning Point USA founder's wrongful death.

"The risk of a rooftop shooter should have been especially top-of-mind given the attempted assassination of President Trump, Charlie Kirk’s close friend and political ally, by a rooftop shooter the previous year," reads the filing, signed by Kirk family attorneys Loren Washburn, Brett Parkinson and Clifford Parkinson and dated Sept. 9.

In one alleged exchange cited in the filing, Turning Point USA organizers told UVU Police Chief Jeffrey Long that UVU students had informed them of rooftop access to the Sorenson Center, a building "pretty close" to where Kirk would be speaking the day he was killed — and directly west of the Losee Center, which is where his alleged killer fired the shot from.

That does seem a serious oversight. Granted, in security matters like these, the organization responsible has to get it right every time, while a prospective assassin only has to get it right once. 

The Kirk family's council also made 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, which included protecting the rooftops surrounding the quad where Charlie was speaking," said Brett Parkinson, counsel for the Kirk family. "Those failures not only robbed Charlie Kirk of his life, but also robbed his family of their husband, father, son, and brother, with impacts that will compound for the rest of their lives."

This is a serious allegation indeed, but what's perhaps more serious, and more troubling, is the idea that conservative speakers like Charlie now apparently have to worry about left-wing assassins and must have security measures approaching those of the President of the United States. You would think that, of all places, a college campus would be the perfect place for an open debate of ideas, but it's just not like that anymore. Now we live in a world where apparently, conservative speakers have to have airtight security and must have every rooftop and every vantage point inspected and secured from would-be assassins. Now we live in a world, as well, where we have to put up with deranged leftists celebrating the assassination of a conservative speaker whose only offense was talking with people - not talking to people, talking with them. 

Maybe this action by Charlie's family will give them some recompense for the security failures on that bloody day. Maybe it will prompt venues hosting such events to be a little more attentive to the details. Perhaps it won't. But the bigger problem remains: threatened violence from the left, always from the left.

You can view the Kirk family's notice of claim here.

Editor’s Note: The American people overwhelmingly support President Trump’s law and order agenda.

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