Utah homicides down in 2025, but high-profile killings made it seem more violent

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Utah homicides decreased to 93 in 2025 from 100 in 2024 despite many high-profile killings.
Notable incidents include Charlie Kirk's assassination and a family festival shooting in June where four were killed.
Prosecutors seek death penalties in two cases, including an ambush of police officers in August.

SALT LAKE CITY — There were fewer people killed in Utah as a result of homicide in 2025 than the year before, though it may not have seemed that way because 2025 was a year of many high-profile killings.

Two police officers were ambushed, shot and killed; a man peacefully protesting was killed by a man who was supposed to be acting as a peacekeeper; four people — including an 8-month-old baby and an unborn child — were shot and killed while attending a family festival in West Valley City; and a Saratoga Springs mother and her 8-year-old son were killed inside their home in a case in which there have been no arrests.

But no killing — let alone any other story — received more attention in Utah in 2025 than the assassination of Charlie Kirk.

Grim tally:

Kirk, 31, a conservative activist and co-founder of Turning Point USA, was at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10 when he was shot in the neck and killed while sitting under a tent of an outdoor amphitheater-courtyard area speaking in front of about 3,000 people. Tyler James Robinson, 22, of Washington, Washington County, was arrested about 33 hours later after turning himself in. He is charged with capital murder and prosecutors have already said they will seek the death penalty if Robinson is convicted.

A total of 93 people died as a result of homicide in 2025, according to statistics kept exclusively by KSL. That's down from 100 homicides in 2024. There were 94 Utah homicides in 2023, compared to 80 in 2022, 95 in 2021, and 103 in 2020. The number of homicides could increase if death investigations that are currently unsolved are later determined to be the result of homicide.

Homicide is defined as the killing of one person at the hands of another, whether it is done intentionally, recklessly, accidentally or in self-defense. Murder is the legal term used in criminal cases for the unlawful killing of another person. A person who commits a homicide may not necessarily be charged with murder. For example, while fatal police shootings are homicides, most of those shootings are determined by a county attorney to be legally justified and charges are seldom filed.

KSL and the Deseret News have been compiling an annual list of homicide victims for 33 years as a way to remember those who tragically had their lives cut short. The list also serves as a way to identify trends and raise public awareness of issues in hopes of preventing future violence.

The Kirk killing was the second case in 2025 in which prosecutors announced they would be seeking the death penalty in a Utah murder case.

On Aug. 17, Tremonton-Garland Police Sgt. Lee Sorensen, 56, and officer Eric Estrada, 31, were shot and killed while responding to a domestic violence call. Ryan Michael Bate, 32, is accused of opening fire on the officers with a high-powered rifle after they came to investigate a 911 hangup call from his wife. A Box Elder County sheriff's deputy and his police dog, who were responding to a call for backup, were also shot while inside his vehicle. Bate is charged with two counts of capital murder. Prosecutors say they intend to seek the death penalty if Bate is convicted.

One of the other most talked about homicides in Utah in 2025 was the shooting death of Arthur "Afa" Folasa Ah Loo, 39, who was killed while peacefully marching at the No Kings protest in Salt Lake City on March 15. Matt Scott Alder, 43, of Murray, was charged with manslaughter following a six-month investigation. Alder saw Arturo Roberto Gamboa, 24, assembling and then carrying an AR-15 into the crowd of marchers, according to prosecutors. Apparently believing that Gamboa was about to commit a mass shooting, charging documents say Alder fired three rounds into the crowd. One shot hit and injured Gamboa. But another hit and killed Ah Loo. Alder was not charged with shooting Gamboa.

55 people were shot and killed in Utah during 2025, which is down from 68 the year before.
14 people were shot and killed by police officers across the state last year — just one less than in 2024.
11 people were stabbed to death last year, 5 were beaten, 3 died in an arson fire and 1 person was killed by a bow and arrow.
12 people were hit or run over or involved by another vehicle in 2025 in cases that prosecutors charged as murder, manslaughter or negligent homicide.

Cases charged as manslaughter are included in KSL's annual statistics, which, according to Utah law, means a person "recklessly" caused the death of another. Cases that are charged as automobile homicide or negligence resulting in death were not counted to remain consistent with previous years. Most negligence cases involve fatal crashes between drivers and either pedestrians, bicycles or other vehicles.

Although not included in this year's 93 total, an additional 15 people were killed as a result of automobile homicide in 2025, plus another five people who died in crashes that resulted in criminal charges, but not for murder, manslaughter or negligent homicide.

Thirty people were killed by a spouse, domestic partner, friend or acquaintance last year, down from 34 in 2024.

According to KSL statistics, a total of 20 children died as a result of homicide in 2025, up from 16 the year before. Eleven children under the age of 14 were killed. The youngest victims were:

An unborn child killed while attending West Fest at Centennial Park, 5405 W. 3100 South, on June 15. A 16-year-old boy who had an ongoing dispute with an 18-year-old man opened fire into a crowd, killing Hassan Lugundi, 18, of West Valley City, and three innocent bystanders, including Fnu Reena, 41, of West Jordan, Reena's unborn child and 8-month-old Anderson Garcia Cabrera Jr. Matthiaz Centre Lauti Ioane-Register is charged as an adult with four counts of aggravated murder.
Giovanni Valenzuela, 1 month, died on March 17 due to injuries likely caused by "infant shaking, forceful impact and similar forceful handling," according to police. His father, Armando Valenzuela, 25, is charged with murder.
Isla, 2 months, was found face down in a bathtub next to her mother, who had fallen asleep in Eagle Mountain. Taylor Nichole Trusty, 24, is charged with manslaughter.

The oldest homicide victim was 81-year-old Clarinda Weston, who was beaten to death in Fort Duchesne after prosecutors say she would not let her son use her car.

The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.