Death for Charlie Kirk’s killer? Utah Governor vows to pursue death penalty; what the law says as debate over firing squad vs. lethal injection starts

Utah’s Republican Gov. Spencer Cox confirmed the State of Utah will be pursuing the death penalty for the assassin of Charlie Kirk at the press conference on September 11. With this announcement, the law enforcement also released a new video of the incident where the suspected shooter is seen jumping from the building roof.

“The last thing I will just say is we've been working with our attorneys, getting everything that we need, affidavits ready so that we can pursue the death penalty in this case. And that will happen here in the state of Utah,” he added.



Spencer Cox warned Wednesday that “we still have the death penalty” in the state, as quoted by the Deseret News.

Utah and the death penalty

As per the Death Penalty Information Center, Utah is one of 27 states with the death penalty, in addition to the federal government and the military. Unlike gun violence, capital punishment has declined nationwide over the years. The Trump administration has prioritized reviving it.

Utah reinstated the death penalty in 1973, following the US Supreme Court’s Furman v. Georgia ruling. The state was the first in the nation to resume executions after capital punishment returned in 1976, putting Gary Gilmore to death by firing squad in 1977.

Under current law, capital punishment in Utah applies to aggravated murder cases, including the killing of a child under 14 (added in 2007). In 2003, the legislature banned executions for people with intellectual disabilities.

Since 1977, Utah has executed seven people, most recently Ronnie Lee Gardner in 2010 by firing squad. Utah is the only state to have used firing squads in the modern era.

Notable cases include Ronnie Lee Gardner, executed in 2010, and Ronald Lafferty, sentenced to death in 1985 for a double murder but never executed due to long-running questions over his mental competency. He died on death row in 2019.

Lethal injection or firing squad?

In Utah, the death penalty is carried out primarily by lethal injection, but the state is unique in also allowing execution by firing squad under limited circumstances. The firing squad may be used if lethal injection is declared unconstitutional or unavailable, and it remains an option for inmates who chose it before May 3, 2004. Utah is the only state in the modern era to have executed prisoners by firing squad, most recently in 2010.

The online debate has also started; Tyler Hansen, who posted the video of the press release, commented, “Hopefully they choose the firing squad route given the way he took Charlie’s life.”

People have also demanded making the execution public; one X user, MatthewBerry, commented, “Make it swift and public.”