EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — In the wake of a tragic shooting at a public event in Utah, questions arise on went wrong and how it could have been prevented. KTSM’s Ian Roth spoke with El Paso venue and security consultant Brian Kennedy, who offered insight into the challenges of securing large-scale public events, and where the Utah event may have fallen short.
“They did a lot of things right,” Kennedy pointed out during KTSM at Noon on Thursday. “But the problem is, you have to be perfect.”
Kennedy, a former El Paso city representative and security advisor, highlighted what he saw as key missteps at the Charlie Kirk Turning Point USA event before a large crowd at a university in Utah.
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Jeff Long, the Utah Valley University campus police chief, told reporters that six of his officers staffed the debate, and that his department had coordinated with Kirk’s own security team. He noted that Kirk had been speaking “in a lower area surrounded by buildings” but did not say whether officers had inspected nearby rooftops.
“That seems like pretty standard stuff,” Kennedy said about Utah event that drew approximately 3,000 attendees. “We’ve got to have more people, and we’ve got to have checks. Most of these problems can be solved with more badges, more cops, more checkpoints. You’ve got to have a checkpoint at almost all large events nowadays.”…