NEWYou can now hearken to Fox Information articles!
OREM, Utah – As Utah Valley College college students returned to campus following conservative influencer Charlie Kirk’s assassination, those that spoke to Fox Information Digital had been divided over whether or not Tyler Robinson ought to face the demise penalty.
Utah County Legal professional Jeff Grey introduced on Tuesday that Utah prosecutors would search the demise penalty towards Robinson on a number of fees, together with aggravated homicide, felony discharge of a firearm, obstruction of justice, witness tampering and fee of a violent offense within the presence of a kid.
“I feel it’s very essential,” Ryder Warner, a UVU pupil who was getting into the courtyard when Kirk was shot final Wednesday, stated of a possible demise penalty towards Robinson.
Warner instructed Fox Information Digital that, as a Christian, he did not imagine in taking one other human’s life, however “with this case, the place any individual was simply right here to share an opinion and misplaced their life due to their opinion, I feel that whoever took their life ought to be killed, too.”
“I feel that is solely truthful,” he stated.
CHARLIE KIRK’S KILLING AT UTAH UNIVERSITY PROMPTS SCRUTINY OF SECURITY MEASURES
Utah Valley College college students spoke to Fox Information Digital as they returned to campus following the assassination of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk. (Fox Information Digital;Tess Crowley/The Deseret Information through AP)
Kirk was shot and killed whereas talking to UVU college students final Wednesday, Sept. 10. After a 33-hour manhunt, Robinson was arrested for allegedly assassinating Kirk. Grey outlined the formal fees towards Robinson throughout a press convention on Tuesday, which was adopted by the suspect’s first court docket look.
UTAH LEADERS URGE UNITY FOLLOWING CHARLIE KIRK’S ASSASSINATION: ‘TURNING POINT FOR AMERICA’
Afton Miller, a junior at UVU who stated she was 5 to 10 ft away from Kirk when he was shot, stated Robinson going through the demise penalty “hurts a bit of bit.”
“I am pro-life,” Miller stated. “I imagine that any individual deserves to dwell, however in moments like this, it is very onerous that their household can be dropping their son as properly. It is simply as painful to lose any individual.”
She stated it was “extraordinarily traumatic” to witness the assassination of one in all her “best heroes” on her faculty campus.
A memorial honoring conservative influencer Charlie Kirk has steadily grown exterior Utah Valley College’s campus within the wake of his assassination on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (Deirdre Heavey/Fox Information Digital)
UVU pupil Jessie Ball, who was additionally on campus when Kirk was assassinated, stated final week’s tragedy impressed her to make use of her voice and converse up like Kirk did.
“It is a onerous factor to observe, and as individuals who most likely did not see the indicators coming, it must be heartbreaking,” Ball stated. “I do know my household and I might be praying for them to really feel God’s love and the peace by it, however his actions have penalties, and so they have a long-lasting impression, and if that is what the state agreed on…”
James Whitney, one other UVU pupil, instructed Fox Information Digital that “they discovered the gun in my dad and mom’ yard.” In line with Robinson’s charging paperwork, investigators discovered a “bolt-action rifle wrapped in a towel” in a wooded space on the northeast finish of campus, however authorities haven’t confirmed the precise location.
Whitney stated it was “scary” returning to campus. He stated he usually tries to remain out of politics as a result of political violence is “turning into normalized.”
Group members in Tyler Robinson’s hometown in Washington, Utah, organized prayer baskets for the Robinson household and Charlie Kirk’s household. (Deirdre Heavey/Fox Information Digital)
“I do not agree with what occurred right here,” Whitney stated. “I do not assume any human being ever deserves to have that sort of hate taken out on their life, ever, together with in entrance of their children. With the demise penalty, I imply, lots of people listed here are non secular. What would Jesus do?” Whitney requested.
And whereas Whitney emphasised that he did not agree with what Robinson did, “particularly by myself faculty grounds,” the UVU pupil stated he did not “condone any form of demise in any form of approach,” because the Utah County lawyer seeks the demise penalty.
In the meantime, Trae Stevens, who just isn’t a UVU pupil however stated he grew up about an hour’s drive south and was visiting the campus on Tuesday to pay his respects, instructed Fox Information Digital it is “truthful” for Robinson to face the demise penalty.
Flowers and tributes to conservative influencer Charlie Kirk have crammed Utah Valley College’s campus within the wake of his assassination on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (Deirdre Heavey/Fox Information Digital)
“I feel it is unhappy for anyone to die,” Stevens stated. “It is a loopy scenario and simply to see the way it’s affected nearly the complete world and that this one man might have such evil in his coronary heart. It is unhappy, however I feel it is truthful, sure.”
UVU lessons resumed on Wednesday, one week after Kirk’s assassination. The campus started reopening on Monday as college students and locals visited campus to pay their respects to Kirk by leaving flowers and posters.
An American flag is now hanging contained in the UVU courtyard, the place Kirk was standing when he was shot.
An American flag now hangs the place conservative influencer Charlie Kirk was shot at Utah Valley College on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025, because the campus begins to reopen. (Deirdre Heavey/Fox Information Digital)
The campus is planning a “Vigil for Unity” on Friday for college kids, school, employees and members of the group to collect in “remembering, therapeutic and reaffirming shared values.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“This assault was not simply on a person, however on the spirit of free expression, civil discourse, and mental inquiry that sits on the very basis of our college,” UVU President Astrid S. Tuminez stated in a press release. “The violence that occurred on our campus has shaken us deeply. We stay steadfast in our dedication to studying, dialogue, and the values that unite us, even in instances of grief. Collectively we select hope for the long run, and look after one another throughout this time.”
Deirdre Heavey is a politics author for Fox Information Digital.