Republican Utah Governor Spencer Cox said Saturday that investigators believe suspected Charlie Kirk assassin, Tyler Robinson, was “deeply indoctrinated with leftist ideology.”

“It’s very clear to us and to the investigators that this was a person who was deeply indoctrinated with leftist ideology,” Cox told The Wall Street Journal.

The Journal report noted that Robinson “lived much of life on the internet.” His mother said that by age 15, Robinson was dressing up as “some guy from a meme” for Halloween.

Cox has previously revealed that Robinson’s family members told investigators that the 22-year-old, who did not have a registered political party affiliation, had become more political over the last few years. At a recent dinner, Robinson discussed Kirk’s upcoming appearance at an outdoor event on the Utah Valley campus in Orem, and talked about why he didn’t like Kirk or his conservative ideology.

Additionally, recovered bullet casings found with the apparent murder weapon had anti-fascist engravings, Cox said. One casing read, “Hey Fascist! Catch!” and another included the lyrics from a famous Italian anti-fascist song called “Bella Ciao.”

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox confirmed writings on bullet casings of Charlie Kirk’s killer, Tyler Robinson:

– Notices bulges, OWO what’s this?
– Hey Fascist! Catch!
– Oh bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao
– If you read this you are gay LMAO#CharlieKirk #TylerRobinson pic.twitter.com/bi3eghpBG4

— CapitolModerate (@CapitolModerate) September 12, 2025

Kirk, 31, was assassinated while answering questions at Utah Valley University on Wednesday. The politico had massive influence with young conservatives, having founded Turning Point USA at just 18 years old. He was widely known for routinely speaking openly about his Christian faith.

Cox said during a Friday presser that Kirk’s assassination could be a “turning point” on whether the country would embrace free and open debate or turn to political violence.

“This is certainly about the tragic death, assassination, political assassination, of Charlie Kirk,” the governor said. “But it is also much bigger than an attack on an individual. It is an attack on all of us. 
It is an attack on the American experiment. It is an attack on our ideals. This cuts to the very foundation of who we are, of who we have been, and who we could be in better times.”

“Political violence is different than any other type of violence, for lots of different reasons,” Cox added. “One, because in the very act that Charlie championed of expression, that freedom of expression that is enshrined in our founding documents, in having his life taken in that very act makes it more difficult for people to feel like they can share their ideas, that they can speak freely.”

Related: ‘We’ll Never Surrender’: Erika Kirk Gives Emotional, Fiery Address Following Husband’s Assassination

Imagine facing your nation’s Supreme Court for the “crime” of sharing a Bible verse. On October 30, that’s the reality for Päivi Räsänen, a Finnish grandmother, medical doctor, and parliamentarian. Her soon-to-be seven-year ordeal began in 2019, when she questioned her church’s support for Helsinki Pride and posted a Bible verse on X. That single tweet triggered 13 hours of police interrogation, two full trials, and now a third prosecution under Finland’s “hate speech” law.

Räsänen’s case might sound like an exclusively European story — but it also serves as a warning about the growing threat of censorship coming from the EU. While someone living outside of Europe might assume they are exempt from the troubling wave of censorship spreading across the continent, that assumption is dangerously mistaken.

The EU has implemented an online censorship law that could turn stories like Päivi’s into a legalized norm. The law, known as The Digital Services Act (DSA), poses one of the greatest threats to free speech online, not just in Europe, but worldwide.

Presented as a way to create a “safe online environment,” the DSA is in fact a sweeping censorship regime. It compels major online platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, X, and Google to take down “illegal content” or face crippling fines of up to 6% of their global revenue. For companies like Apple or Meta, that could mean billions. With penalties this steep, platforms have every incentive to preemptively over-censor content, not just in Europe, but everywhere.

And what counts as “illegal” content? That depends on the varying laws of 27 EU member states. One country’s vague definition of “hate speech” or “misinformation” can ripple outward, forcing platforms to delete content across the entire internet. What Brussels bureaucrats decide could silence speech in Boston or Boise — posts fully protected by the First Amendment, gone in an instant.

The enforcement system makes this worse. The DSA empowers “trusted flaggers,” which can include activist groups, regulators, or even private entities, to demand removals. The European Commission itself sits at the top, monitoring and punishing companies that don’t comply. In practice, this means platforms will act first and ask questions later, scrubbing lawful speech before it can cause “problems” in Europe.

Credit: Alliance Defending Freedom International

Päivi Räsänen’s case shows what happens when governments weaponize vague speech laws: peaceful expression treated as criminal conduct. The DSA threatens to make this dynamic global. By institutionalizing vague categories like “hate speech” and “disinformation,” it builds the architecture for censorship that knows no borders.

Americans should not be lulled into thinking this is someone else’s problem. The internet is global, and so are the platforms that host our speech. Already, U.S. lawmakers — from the House Judiciary Committee to Vice President JD Vance — have warned that the DSA could chill constitutionally protected expression here at home. The danger isn’t hypothetical: EU officials have already floated the possibility of censoring American political figures under the law.

The stakes are enormous. If the EU succeeds in exporting its censorship regime, authoritarian governments worldwide are likely to use it as a blueprint. They will point to Brussels as justification for their own crackdowns. Already, we’ve seen Europe attempt to export the DSA model abroad. For example, at the EU-Canada Summit, Canada and the EU agreed to advance a Digital Trade Agreement that expands the reach of DSA principles.

Free speech does not stop at national borders. If America cares about freedom of expression, it must push back against the DSA and its creeping global reach. Päivi Räsänen’s trial is a human face on what’s at stake. Her courage reminds us that when governments claim the power to police speech, no voice is safe.

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Lorcan Price is an Irish barrister and legal counsel for ADF International.

The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.