Student who debated Charlie Kirk before he was killed details harassment on first death anniversary
OREM, UTAH: Hunter Kozak says the year since Charlie Kirk was shot and killed has brought death threats, online harassment, and conspiracy theories accusing him of being involved in the killing.
Kozak was the last person to ask Kirk a question moments before the Turning Point USA founder was fatally shot on September 10 last year at Utah Valley University during the first stop of his “American Comeback Tour.”
The 30-year-old told The Salt Lake Tribune that strangers have threatened him and his family, shared their personal information online, and even confronted him outside his home.
It's been a year since Charlie Kirk was killed while I was debating him. I'm releasing an hour long video essay documenting the harassment that conspiracy theorists have lobbed over the last year, and what it's like living on the inside of these conspiracies. Here’s a short clip. pic.twitter.com/6YnIy6cXcE
— Hunter Kozak (@HunterEKozak) September 10, 2026
Hunter Kozak details harassment after Charlie Kirk killing
“It’s crazy when I look back over all the stuff over the last year,” Kozak said. “I don’t think people understand how bad it’s gotten.”
Kozak, a student at Utah Valley University, had attended the event hoping to debate Kirk.
Organizers selected him to ask a question, making him the final person to speak to Kirk before the shooting.
After the killing, people online began closely examining footage from the event and Kozak’s behavior before and after the gunshot.
Some accused him of being involved, while others claimed his reaction suggested he knew the shooting was coming.
Kozak denied the claims and said normal movements were being treated as signs of a conspiracy. He also cooperated with the FBI during its investigation.
“I felt really picked apart,” he said. “Any small, subtle movement I really noticed could just be blown out of proportion.”
Hunter Kozak says threats extended to his family
The harassment did not stop with Kozak. He said people found his family members on social media and posted their addresses online, while others repeatedly threatened to harm him.
Some people also discovered that Kozak’s newborn daughter was in the neonatal intensive care unit when the shooting happened.
They questioned why he and his wife had attended Kirk’s event.
Kozak said he continues to block people who contact him about the shooting.
“Just today I blocked someone,” he said. “It happens daily. … The conspiracy theorists have only ramped up in their fervor.”
Hunter Kozak continuing studies at Utah Valley University after Charlie Kirk killing
Despite the attention and harassment, Kozak chose to remain at Utah Valley University.
He is finishing a second bachelor’s degree in math education after completing a philosophy degree this spring.
Kozak also runs a popular TikTok account where he shares his liberal political views and sometimes debates Kirk’s opinions.
Kirk, 31, was a prominent ally of President Donald Trump and the Republican Party and had co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012.
His campus debates, where students were invited to challenge his views, had become a signature part of his public profile.
Tyler Robinson, who is accused of killing Kirk, was arrested and charged with aggravated murder and six other counts. His case was sent to trial last month, where he could face the death penalty if convicted.
As per Kozak, however, the year has been defined by trying to move forward while dealing with the attention surrounding the final debate he had with Kirk.
“I do want to be back here,” Kozak said. “I want to be here with my community.”
He hopes to one day become a math teacher.
