Texas State Student Who Mocked Charlie Kirk at Memorial No Longer at School

By Ayden Runnels, The Texas Tribune

SAN MARCOS, TX — A Texas State University student’s enrollment ended after a video was posted showing him mocking conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s death during a memorial, while shouting profanities and racial slurs, and spitting near mourners.

The video, posted Tuesday morning on X, shows the student in a crowd slapping his neck several times, calling himself Kirk and at one point climbing the base of a statue and stating “my name is Charlie Kirk” before falling over. Kirk died after being shot in the neck on Sept. 10 during an event he was hosting at Utah Valley University.

The video sparked responses condemning the student, including from Gov. Greg Abbott, who reshared the video and demanded Texas State University take action.

“Expel this student immediately,” Abbott said in a social media post on X. “Mocking assassination must have consequences.”

Six hours after Abbott’s request, Texas State University announced the person in the video had been identified and “was no longer a student” at the university, according to a statement from Texas State University President Kelly Damphousse. It was not immediately clear whether the student was expelled or voluntarily withdrew. In Damphousse’s statement, he called the video “disturbing” and condemned the student’s behavior.

“I will not tolerate behavior that mocks, trivializes, or promotes violence on our campuses,” Damphousse said.

The name of the student was not released by Damphousse in his statement, and said that federal law prevents the school from commenting on individual student conduct matters. 

A student at Texas Tech University was arrested for misdemeanor assault on Sept. 12 after a video of her demeaning Kirk and taunting students at a vigil was shared on social media, including by Abbott.

The Texas Education Agency said it has received 180 complaints it will investigate related to comments made about Kirk. 

Damphousse pushed back on claims that the student’s actions in the video reflects on the university or its community as a whole in an email sent to Texas State University students. He also asked for “measured response and dialogue” amid the anxiety on campus.

“Just as the behavior in the video was reprehensible, attempts to spread the blame onto innocent students are also unacceptable,” Damphousse said. “The actions of one person do not reflect our entire community or the individuals in it.”