SALT LAKE CITY — Donald Trump Jr. on Wednesday used the words “shocking” and “frustration” to describe the security preparations for the Utah rally at which political activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated.
“I think there's a lot of frustration, frankly, that this could have ever happened,” Trump, the son of the U.S. president, told FOX News. “I mean, one of the things I did hear that was sort of shocking was that there were only six officers on duty on this campus event.
“No briefing beforehand; no real set game plan, and six officers for a Turning Point event, and anyone who's watched the news in the last decade or so would realize there'd be thousands of people on this campus.
“So, I imagine there's some frustration with that.”
Trump was responding to a question about how Charlie Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, was coping. Both she and Trump were in the Provo courtroom Monday for the preliminary hearing of Tyler Robinson, the man accused of shooting and killing Charlie Kirk.
WATCH: Prosecutors play video in court of Robinson after he turned himself in following Kirk shooting
Besides describing how police responded to the shooting, a former Utah Valley University police officer, Christopher Bagley, acknowledged there were six officers on duty for a crowd of an estimated 3,000 and there was no written plan.
“Did you receive any type of briefing materials, written materials prior to the event that talked about who would be covering what or anything like that?” defense attorney Kathryn Nester asked during cross-examination.
“No, not that morning,” replied Bagley, who has since gone to work for police in Spanish Fork. “Like I said, it started getting hectic, so we were trying to get down there to secure the area and push people away from the top of the tent.”
Besides establishing whether there’s enough cause for the defendant to stand trial, preliminary hearings are an opportunity for the defense to ask about evidence. Nester was likely probing whether there was a written security plan she could request.
Utah Valley issued a statement Wednesday afternoon.
“UVU has commissioned an independent review,” the statement said, “selecting two external organizations, The Lake Forest Group, LLC and Brownstein, Hyatt, Farber, Schreck, LLP.
“The independent third-party analysis will include a comprehensive after-action report. UVU is committed to integrating these findings into its safety protocols to benefit UVU and the broader Utah higher education community.
“UVU will provide an update when the independent review is complete.”
FOX 13 News looked online at some standards for policing a large gathering, particularly a political one. One guide from the International Association of Chiefs of Police describes assigning an incident commander who prepares and distributes a written plan.
A former FBI agent told FOX 13 the day after the shooting that there should have been police monitoring the rooftops.
WATCH: Years before Kirk shooting, concerns about security at Utah Valley University
UVU has said no threats were detected in advance of the Sept. 10 campus rally.
FOX 13 has filed public records requests seeking written communications that might show what discussions were had amongst UVU administrators. Those requests have been denied, citing Robinson’s right to a fair trial and concerns those discussions – if they were public – could create a further danger.
