Charlie Kirk explains how he’d want person who ‘murdered him’ to be punished in resurfaced video

The late political activist eerily alluded to the idea of his own ‘murder’ while answering a question from a member of the audience

The conservative activist, who was fatally shot earlier this month, explained the punishment he believes is appropriate for criminals who take a life.

Kirk, 31, eerily used the idea of his own murder to accentuate his point – just 20 days before he was shot dead while speaking at Utah Valley University on 10 September.

Tyler Robinson, 22, was taken into custody following a 33-hour manhunt and has been charged with aggravated murder in relation to Kirk’s death.

Officials in the US have said they will be seeking the death penalty if he is convicted.

Last Monday (22 September), footage of one of Kirk’s final public appearances at the Alabama Theatre in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, was shared.

The right-wing political activist joined devout Christian, public speaker and author Alex McFarland on stage as part of his ‘Speaker Series’ on 21 August.

McFarland’s camp said they have now shared the video ‘so everyone could see Charlie doing what he did so very well’ in the weeks leading up to his shock death.

Charlie Kirk discussed the prospect of his own murder in one of his final public appearances (Trent Nelson/The Salt Lake Tribune/Getty Images)

A number of audience members asked Kirk questions during the talk, including a woman who raised her ‘concerns over things like the death penalty’ with him and how religious scripture often leaves people feeling conflicted.

She asked Kirk whether it was ever ‘somehow justified’ to take the life of another human being if they are a ‘horrible criminal’, despite the Ten Commandments stating: “You shall not murder.”

The father-of-two responded: “Great question. I get this question a lot. So, it does say ‘do not murder’ – it does not say ‘do not kill’. So those are two different Hebrew words, right?

“To murder is a completely different thing than to kill. For example, you’re allowed to kill in self-defence. Somebody comes into your house, you are allowed to take that life, if your life is being put into jeopardy.”

Kirk pointed out that ‘a life for a life is the only law that is in all five books of the Torah’, adding: “Not even the Sabbath is in all five books of the Torah.”

“So, this idea of taking a life if you take a life,” he continued. “What is it rooted in? Why does it matter? Well, first of all, God is communicating to us.

“The first thing – taking human life is a major deal. That’s God’s first moral teaching in the Torah, that it’s not to be trivialised. The only punishment imaginable for taking the thing that… only we are made in the image of God.

“So if you take another image bearer’s life, what could possibly be a just punishment for that? Well, according to the economy of God, it’s that your life must also be taken.

“And according to scriptural theology, we are not taking that person’s life. When you take another person’s life, you already took your own life.”

He shared his thoughts on the death penalty while on stage with McFarland (YouTube/@AlexMcFarlandShow)

He then alluded to the possibility of his own murder to further hammer home his point.

“If someone were to murder Alex or murder me, they already murdered themselves in that action,” Kirk told the crowd. “They already bestowed the punishment upon themselves, we are simply completing the task.

“And think about it – some people will say, ‘But Charlie, it’s not fair because of whatever sob story liberal reason’. But you know who it’s not fair to? It’s not fair to the victims.

“You are cheapening the lives of the victims. You are basically saying, the victims die and you get to live. So you get to continue to live, even though you took the lives of others.”

Discussing what punishment he believes best fits the crime of murder, Kirk added: “In order to say that those people’s lives mattered, the only just thing that we could reason ourselves to, is to take that person’s life.

“And that is not murder. That is killing. And it’s societal self-defence.”

Kirk’s widow Erika declared she has ‘forgiven’ her husband’s killer during a speech at his funeral service on 21 September, telling mourners: “I forgive him because it was what Christ did and it is what Charlie would do.

“The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the gospel is love and always love, love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us.”