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Frank Turek Shares Harrowing Account of Charlie Kirk's Final Moments After Assassination
Frank Turek, Charlie Kirk's friend and mentor, provides a heartbreaking firsthand account of the frantic moments after Charlie was shot. Standing just 25 feet away when the shot rang out, Frank jumped into the SUV and tried desperately to save Charlie's life during the chaotic rush to the hospital. In this emotional testimony, Frank describes Charlie's final moments, the heroic efforts of his security team, and the profound faith that defined Charlie's life and ministry. As the nation mourns, Frank reflects on Charlie's message that 'politics is peanuts compared to Jesus' and how Charlie's legacy of faith continues to impact thousands around the world.
A Mentor's Devastating Loss
Frank Turek, renowned Christian apologist and mentor to Charlie Kirk, describes Charlie as "literally like a son to me." With three sons of his own slightly older than Charlie, Frank considered him his fourth son. When the shot rang out, Frank's paternal instincts took over completely. "If your son got hit, what would you do?" he asks. "I could not just say take him, you guys got it. If there was any way I could save him, I had to do something."
The Frantic Rush to Save a Life
Frank describes the chaotic scene as Charlie's security team worked to get him into their SUV. "I'm on one side of the car, the right side, they are getting Charlie in so I run to the other side but the guy was dragging him in blocking the entrance so then I run to the back, pop the top, the back gate open and I jump in the back."
The vehicle lurched forward before Frank could properly get in, nearly throwing him from the back of the SUV. He grabbed hold and closed the gate as five people crammed into the vehicle: Justin driving, Dan in the front with GPS navigation, Rick and Brian in the back with Charlie, and Frank coming over the back seat. Charlie was so tall they couldn't close the door—they drove all the way to the hospital with it open.
"To this day I don't know how Brian stayed in the car because we are just go, go, go," Frank recalls. The team worked desperately to stop the bleeding while Frank yelled "Come on, Charlie, come on." His phone was still connected, and his son and daughter-in-law heard everything unfolding in real time.
A Security Team's Devotion
Frank praises Charlie's security detail, describing how they loved Charlie deeply and remained remarkably composed under unimaginable pressure. "They were much cooler than I was, calmly but swiftly doing what they were trained to do." Rick started praying out loud, Frank joined in prayer, and they continued navigating through surface streets, beeping the horn at intersections in a vehicle with no emergency lights.
At one point, an ambulance came toward them. There was brief discussion about whether to stop, but they decided to keep going. The doctor later confirmed this was the right decision. Someone in the car said, "Let's get there in one piece," as they cut through intersections in their desperate race against time.
The Moment Charlie Passed Into Eternity
Frank attempted to start CPR, but he knew something was profoundly wrong. "Charlie was not there. His eyes were fixed. He was not looking at me, he was looking past me right into eternity. He was with Jesus already."
The two security personnel on either side of Charlie performed heroic work trying to stop the bleeding, remaining calmer than Frank as they applied their training. But Charlie's eyes were dilated and fixed, looking right through Frank.
Frank later learned from the surgeon that Charlie died instantly. "The only comfort was that he did not suffer," Frank says. The medical team at the hospital did manage to restart Charlie's heart briefly, but only because Charlie was a healthy young man. The injury was catastrophic. "It wasn't like if we had better medical attention or if we were a little bit faster getting to the hospital that it would have made a difference. Charlie died instantly. He was with Jesus, absent from the body, present with the Lord."
The Events Leading Up to the Tragedy
This was the first event Frank attended with Charlie on his college campus tour. Charlie had invited Frank specifically because he wanted to improve his ability to answer challenging questions from students—something Frank specializes in during his own campus visits. They spent considerable time together refining their answers to common objections and questions about faith.
Frank was standing 25 feet off Charlie's right elbow when the shot rang out. Earlier, as they arrived at the venue, Frank had expressed concern. They had reviewed drone footage from an hour before, and Frank told Charlie, "I don't like this place, there's too many buildings."
But Charlie was brave and shrugged off the concern. He knew thousands of people were there waiting, and he wanted to minister to them. "You cannot minister to people by staying safe all the time," Frank explains. "You have to extend yourself in order to do that, in order to minister to people, and so Charlie did that."
A Legacy Defined by Faith, Not Politics
Frank emphasizes that everyone on Charlie's security detail would have died to save him because they loved him. The irony isn't lost on Frank: "That was Charlie's message to the world, that Jesus died because He loves us. And by trusting in Him, we can not only be forgiven but we can be given His righteousness."
In the wake of Charlie's death, people around the world are rediscovering that life means more than entertainment, money, sex, or power. "You are going to be dead a lot longer than you are going to be alive," Frank observes. "Jesus came to save us from our own iniquity, our own sin. That was Charlie's message."
Frank recalls that Charlie said something profound not long before his death: "Politics is peanuts compared to Jesus." While Charlie was deeply interested in politics and understood its importance in protecting innocent people from evil, he kept eternal perspective. "In light of eternity, the most important message, and it's where Charlie is now, is to be forgiven and given the righteousness of Christ. That was his message."
Charlie's Impact on Relationships and Faith
Following the assassination, many Americans went back to watch Charlie's content with fresh eyes. His discussions with his wife Erika about relationships stand out—giving advice to young people about things they don't normally hear on college campuses. He spoke about how to treat others, how to have healthy relationships, and how men should treat women. His guidance was deep, profound, and completely consistent with his deeply held Christian faith.
Erika Kirk Takes Leadership of Turning Point USA
In breaking news, Erika Kirk, Charlie's widow and mother of their two young children, has been elected CEO and Chair of the Board of Turning Point USA. According to a statement from the organization, this move is in accordance with wishes Charlie frequently expressed before his death.
A Mentor's Grief
Frank's grief is palpable as he reflects on witnessing something no one should have to see. The trauma of holding Charlie in those final moments, of seeing his eyes fixed on eternity, of trying desperately to save someone he loved like a son—these are wounds that will take time to heal. Yet through it all, Frank maintains the same eternal perspective that Charlie exemplified: the assurance of resurrection, the promise of seeing him again, and the knowledge that Charlie's greatest passion wasn't politics or activism, but sharing the message of Jesus Christ with a generation desperately in need of hope.
Video Transcript
[00:03] ? ?
[00:05] >> Sean: BREAKING TONIGHT,
[00:08] CARLY'S WIDOW AND THE MOTHER OF
[00:11] THEIR TWO YOUNG CHILDREN HAS
[00:12] JUST BEEN ELECTED CEO AND CHAIR
[00:14] OF THE BOARD OF TURNING POINT
[00:14] USA.
[00:15] IN A STATEMENT TURNING POINT
[00:18] SAID THIS MOVE IS IN ACCORDANCE
[00:18] WITH THE WISHES CHARLIE
[00:20] FREQUENTLY EXPRESSED BEFORE HIS
[00:24] DEATH.
[00:24] CHARLIE'S ASSASSINATION WAS JUST
[00:25] OVER A WEEK AGO AND WE ARE NOW
[00:26] LEARNING MORE DETAILS FROM THAT
[00:29] HORRIFIC DAY FROM SOMEONE WHO
[00:31] SAW THE ENTIRE THING UNFOLD
[00:34] RIGHT THERE NEXT TO CHARLIE.
[00:39] FRANK TUREK WAS CHARLIE'S FRIEND
[00:40] AND MENTOR AND TO SHARE THIS
[00:42] HARROWING ACCOUNT OF THE FRANTIC
[00:43] MOMENTS AFTER THAT SHOT RANG
[00:44] OUT.
[00:47] >> CHARLIE KIRK WAS LITERALLY
[00:48] LIKE US ON TO ME.
[00:50] I HAVE THREE SONS, HE WAS LIKE
[00:51] MY FOURTH SON.
[00:53] MY THREE SONS ARE A LITTLE BIT
[00:55] OLDER THAN CHARLIE, HE WAS LIKE
[00:55] MY FOURTH SON.
[00:57] SO WHEN HE WAS HIT, IF YOUR SON
[01:01] GOT HIT, WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
[01:04] WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
[01:05] I GOT IN THE CAR.
[01:10] BECAUSE IF THERE WAS ANY WAY I
[01:11] COULD SAVE HIM, I HAD TO DO
[01:13] SOMETHING.
[01:16] I COULD NOT JUST SAY TAKE HIM,
[01:20] YOU GUYS GOT IT.
[01:21] THEY GOT HIM IN THE SIDE OF THE
[01:22] CAR, IT WAS AN SUV, THE SUV WE
[01:26] TOOK OVER, AND I'M ON ONE SIDE
[01:31] AND THERE'S SOME VIDEO OF THIS,
[01:32] I'M ON ONE SIDE OF THE CAR, THE
[01:36] RIGHT SIDE, THEY ARE GETTING
[01:36] CHARLIE IN SO I RUN TO THE OTHER
[01:39] SIDE BUT THE GUY WAS DRAGGING
[01:41] HIM IN BLOCKING THE ENTRANCE SO
[01:41] THEN I RUN TO THE BACK, POP THE
[01:45] TOP, THE BACK GATE OPEN AND I
[01:47] JUMP IN THE BACK, THE CAR
[01:48] LURCHES FORWARD, APPARENTLY
[01:49] SOMEONE JUMPED IN THE CAR.
[01:51] I ALMOST FALL OUT OF THE CAR FOR
[01:54] THE SUV AND THEN I GRABBED THE
[01:55] THING AND CLOSE IT AND THERE'S
[02:00] FIVE OF US IN THE CAR NOW.
[02:04] JUST IN HIS DRIVING, DAN IS
[02:07] UPFRONT WITH THE GPS, RICK IS ON
[02:08] MY LEFT AND BRIAN IS THERE AND
[02:12] I'M COMING OVER THE BACK SEAT
[02:14] AND CHARLIE IS LAID OUT IN
[02:17] FRONT, JUST RIGHT IN FRONT OF
[02:18] ME, AND CHARLIE, SO TALL WE
[02:19] CAN'T CLOSE THE DOOR, WE DROVE ,
[02:27] ALL THE WAY TO THE HOSPITAL WITH
[02:28] THE DOOR OPEN.
[02:29] TO THIS DAY I DON'T KNOW HOW
[02:32] BRIAN STAYED IN THE CAR BECAUSE
[02:33] WE ARE JUST GO, GO, GO.
[02:36] WE ARE TRYING TO STOP THE
[02:36] BLEEDING.
[02:37] YOU SAW IT.
[02:40] AND I'M YELLING COME ON,
[02:42] CHARLIE, COME ON.
[02:44] MEANWHILE MY PHONE IS STILL ON,
[02:45] MY SON AND DAUGHTER-IN-LAW ARE
[02:46] HEARING THIS WHOLE THING AND HIS
[02:49] SECURITY TEAM, THEY LOVED
[02:54] CHARLIE.
[02:56] THEY WERE MUCH COOLER THAN I
[02:56] WERE CARRYING OUT -- CALMLY BUT
[03:01] SWIFTLY DOING WHAT THEY WERE
[03:03] TRAINED TO DO.
[03:03] RICK STARTS PRAYING OUT LOUD,
[03:05] I'M PRAYING OUT LOUD, WE ARE
[03:07] YELLING "LET'S GO".
[03:10] MY SON IS HEARING ALL OF THIS
[03:14] AND WE ARE DOING THE BEST WE CAN
[03:16] TO NAVIGATE TRAFFIC.
[03:16] WE ARE ON SURFACE STREETS AND
[03:19] SUDDENLY THERE'S AN AMBULANCE
[03:20] COMING TOWARDS US AND THERE WAS
[03:25] CONVERSATION IN THE CAR, SHOULD
[03:26] WE STOP?
[03:27] JUST KEEP GOING.
[03:28] THE DOCTOR LATER SAID THAT WAS
[03:30] THE RIGHT THING TO DO.
[03:31] AMBULANCE GOES BY, WE ARE STILL
[03:34] HEADING TO THE HOSPITAL TRYING
[03:35] TO GET THERE.
[03:37] AT ONE POINT SOMEBODY SAYS LET'S
[03:39] GET THERE IN ONE PIECE BECAUSE
[03:40] WE ARE CUTTING THROUGH
[03:41] INTERSECTIONS, BEEPING THE HORN.
[03:44] THIS IS NOT AN EMERGENCY
[03:45] VEHICLE, THERE'S NO LIGHTS, NONE
[03:47] OF THIS.
[03:47] I GO WE HAVE TO START CPR.
[03:50] SO I TRY AND START THAT.
[03:55] NOW...CHARLIE WAS NOT THERE, HIS
[04:08] EYES WERE FIXED.
[04:08] HE WAS NOT LOOKING AT ME, HE WAS
[04:11] LOOKING PAST ME RIGHT INTO
[04:13] ETERNITY, HE WAS WITH JESUS
[04:15] ALREADY.
[04:17] >> Sean: HERE WITH MORE,
[04:18] CHARLIE KIRK'S FRIEND AND
[04:20] MENTOR, FRANK TUREK.
[04:21] I'M SO SORRY.
[04:24] YOUR FRIEND, YOUR MENTOR IN SO
[04:26] MANY WAYS.
[04:26] MY UNDERSTANDING IS YOU WERE
[04:28] VERY CLOSE.
[04:28] YOU ARE RIGHT THERE DESCRIBING
[04:33] AN UNIMAGINABLE SEEN THAT NO ONE
[04:33] WILL BE PREPARED FOR.
[04:35] EVERY BIT OF EFFORT YOU ARE
[04:37] PUTTING IN...WE ALL SAW THE
[04:45] VIDEO.
[04:46] OBVIOUSLY YOU ARE TRYING TO STOP
[04:48] THE BLEEDING BECAUSE HE'S
[04:49] BLEEDING OUT.
[04:49] DID YOU HAVE ANY SUCCESS?
[04:55] >> SEAN, THE TWO GENTLEMEN ON
[04:57] EITHER SIDE OF CHARLIE DID
[04:58] HEROIC WORK TRYING TO STOP THE
[04:59] BLEEDING, I WAS TRYING TO STOP
[05:00] IT AS WELL BUT THEY WERE MUCH
[05:01] CALMER THAN I WAS AND HE WAS
[05:07] LOOKING RIGHT BACK AT ME, RIGHT
[05:08] THROUGH ME, HIS EYES WERE
[05:10] DILATED, THEY WERE FIXED.
[05:13] I LATER LEARNED FROM THE
[05:15] SURGEON, SEAN, THAT CHARLIE DIED
[05:18] INSTANTLY.
[05:20] AND THE ONLY COMFORT WAS THAT HE
[05:22] DID NOT SUFFER.
[05:23] BUT OF COURSE WE DID NOT KNOW
[05:24] THAT AT THE TIME AND SO WE WERE
[05:28] TRYING TO DO EVERYTHING WE
[05:30] COULD, AND IT IS TRUE THAT WHEN
[05:31] WE GOT TO THE HOSPITAL THE TEAM
[05:33] WHO WAS RIGHT ON IT DID GET A
[05:38] PULSE FOR A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME
[05:39] BUT THE DOCTOR LATER SAID THAT
[05:41] IT WAS JUST BECAUSE CHARLIE WAS
[05:42] A HEALTHY YOUNG MAN THAT WE
[05:47] COULD RESTART HIS HEART BUT THE
[05:47] INJURY WAS CATASTROPHIC AND SO
[05:49] IT WASN'T LIKE IF WE HAD BETTER
[05:52] MEDICAL ATTENTION OR IF WE WERE
[05:54] A LITTLE BIT FASTER GETTING TO
[05:56] THE HOSPITAL THAT IT WOULD HAVE
[05:58] MADE A DIFFERENCE.
[05:58] CHARLIE DIED INSTANTLY.
[06:00] HE WAS WITH JESUS, ABSENT FROM
[06:04] THE BODY, PRESENT WITH THE LORD.
[06:06] IN FACT EVERYONE OF THOSE FOLKS
[06:10] ON CHARLIE'S DETAIL, ALL OF HIS
[06:11] BODYGUARDS HAD BEEN WITH HIM FOR
[06:12] QUITE A LONG TIME.
[06:13] THIS IS THE FIRST EVENT I WENT
[06:15] TO BECAUSE CHARLIE WANTED ME TO
[06:16] COME AND WORK THROUGH SOME
[06:17] QUESTIONS WITH HIM BECAUSE HE
[06:20] WANTED TO BE BETTER AT ANSWERING
[06:21] QUESTIONS STUDENTS MIGHT HAVE
[06:22] AND THAT'S KIND OF A THING I DO
[06:24] ON COLLEGE CAMPUSES AS WELL.
[06:25] WE SPENT A LOT OF TIME TOGETHER
[06:28] TRYING TO REFINE OUR ANSWERS AND
[06:29] HE SAID WHY DON'T YOU COME TO
[06:31] THE FIRST ONE WITH ME?
[06:32] SO I DID AND I WAS STANDING
[06:34] 25 FEET OFF HIS RIGHT ELBOW WHEN
[06:35] THAT SHOT RANG OUT AND I THOUGHT
[06:38] TO MYSELF BEFORE, WHEN WE WALKED
[06:39] INTO THAT PLACE, I SAID TO HIM
[06:44] -- WE WERE DRIVING, WE HAD SOME
[06:44] DRONE FOOTAGE FROM AN HOUR
[06:46] BEFORE AND I SAID CHARLIE, I
[06:50] DON'T LIKE THIS PLACE, THERE'S
[06:52] TOO MANY BUILDINGS.
[06:53] BUT OF COURSE CHARLIE WAS BRAVE.
[06:55] HE SHRUGGED IT OFF.
[06:56] HE KNEW THERE WERE THOUSANDS OF
[06:57] PEOPLE THERE AND HE WANTED TO
[06:58] MINISTER TO THEM.
[07:00] YOU CANNOT MINISTER TO PEOPLE BY
[07:03] STAYING SAFE ALL THE TIME.
[07:05] YOU HAVE TO EXTEND YOURSELF IN
[07:06] ORDER TO DO THAT, IN ORDER TO
[07:09] MINISTER TO PEOPLE, AND SO
[07:10] CHARLIE DID THAT.
[07:11] EVERYONE OF THOSE GUYS WOULD
[07:15] HAVE DIED TO SAVE CHARLIE
[07:15] BECAUSE THEY LOVED HIM AND IT'S
[07:19] INTERESTING THAT THAT WAS
[07:19] CHARLIE'S MESSAGE TO THE WORLD,
[07:21] THAT JESUS DIED BECAUSE HE LOVES
[07:26] US.
[07:27] AND BY TRUSTING IN HIM, WE
[07:28] CANNOT ONLY BE FORGIVEN BUT WE
[07:32] CAN BE GIVEN HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS,
[07:33] AND THANKFULLY ALL AROUND THE
[07:34] WORLD NOW, AS YOU KNOW, PEOPLE
[07:36] ARE STARTING TO REDISCOVER THAT
[07:38] THERE'S MORE TO LIFE THAN JUST
[07:41] ENTERTAINMENT, THERE'S MORE TO
[07:43] LIFE THAN JUST MONEY, THERE'S
[07:44] MORE TO LIFE THAN JUST SEX,
[07:47] THERE'S MORE TO LIFE THAN JUST
[07:50] POWER, BECAUSE YOU ARE GOING TO
[07:51] BE DEAD A LOT LONGER THAN YOU
[07:52] ARE GOING TO BE ALIVE.
[07:54] AND JESUS CAME TO SAVE US FROM
[07:58] OUR OWN INEQUITY, OUR OWN SIN.
[08:00] THAT WAS CHARLIE'S MESSAGE.
[08:02] RECENTLY HE SAID POLITICS IS
[08:03] PEANUTS COMPARED TO JESUS.
[08:07] HE WAS INTERESTED IN POLITICS
[08:09] AND YOU KNEW IT HAD IMPORTANCE
[08:11] BECAUSE IT DOES HELP PROTECT
[08:12] INNOCENT PEOPLE FROM EVIL AND
[08:13] THANKFULLY WE HAVE A GOVERNMENT
[08:15] NOW THAT IS DOING THAT.
[08:16] BUT IN LIGHT OF ETERNITY, THE
[08:18] MOST IMPORTANT MESSAGE, AND IT'S
[08:19] WHERE CHARLIE IS NOW, IS TO BE
[08:23] FORGIVEN AND GIVEN THE
[08:24] RIGHTEOUSNESS OF.
[08:25] THAT WAS HIS MESSAGE, SEAN.
[08:28] I WAS PRIVILEGED TO TRY TO HELP
[08:30] HIM ANSWER QUESTIONS RELATED TO
[08:31] THAT.
[08:33] >> Sean: YOU KNOW, LIKE SO
[08:35] MANY AMERICANS AFTER ALL THIS
[08:35] HAPPENED, I WENT BACK, AND TO
[08:39] WATCH HIM, AND HIM AND ERIKA
[08:43] TOGETHER, GIVING ADVICE TO YOUNG
[08:44] PEOPLE, THINGS THEY DON'T
[08:45] NORMALLY HERE ON A COLLEGE
[08:48] CAMPUS, ABOUT HOW TO TREAT
[08:52] OTHERS, HOW TO HAVE
[08:52] RELATIONSHIPS, HOW MEN SHOULD
[08:53] TREAT WOMEN, IT WAS DEEP, IT WAS
[08:58] PROFOUND, IT WAS IN KEEPING WITH
[09:01] HIS DEEPLY HELD CHRISTIAN FAITH.
[09:07] YOU KNOW, HEARING YOUR STORY IS
[09:08] HEARTBREAKING, NOBODY WANTS TO
[09:11] SEE THAT.
[09:12] AS A BELIEVING CHRISTIAN, I'M
[09:13] WITH YOU, I KNOW HE'S IN
[09:15] PARADISE, I KNOW WE WILL ALL SEE
[09:17] HIM AGAIN, I BELIEVE THAT WITH
[09:19] ALL OF MY HEART, MIND AND SOUL
[09:20] AND I'M SORRY YOU HAD TO LIVE
[09:21] THROUGH THAT AND I'M SORRY
[09:24] EVERYTHING THAT HIS FAMILY AND
[09:26] FRIENDS ARE GOING THROUGH AND
[09:27] EVERYBODY AT TURNING POINT IS
[09:28] GOING THROUGH.
[09:29] AND NOBODY SHOULD HAVE TO LIVE
[09:31] THROUGH WHAT YOU LIVED THROUGH.
[09:31] IT IS
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