{"id":38542,"date":"2025-09-15T16:10:53","date_gmt":"2025-09-15T16:10:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=38542"},"modified":"2025-09-15T16:10:53","modified_gmt":"2025-09-15T16:10:53","slug":"neuroscientist-reveals-why-charlie-kirk-raised-his-arms-after-he-was-shot-in-the-neck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=38542","title":{"rendered":"Neuroscientist reveals why Charlie Kirk raised his arms after he was shot in the neck"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Neuroscientist reveals why Charlie Kirk raised his arms after he was shot in the neck<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n
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A neuropsychologist has opened up about why Charlie Kirk was seen raising his arms after being fatally shot.<\/p>\n

As previously reported<\/a>, Kirk died at the age of 31 <\/a>after he was shot in the left side of his neck while appearing at a university event in Utah<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Kirk, a prominent conservative figure and close ally of President Donald Trump, had been addressing a crowd at Utah Valley University (UVU).<\/p>\n

While he was responding to a question at an open-air event under a white gazebo in UVU\u2019s quad \u2014 a bowl-shaped courtyard \u2014 with an audience of about 3,000 people, he was struck by a single shot.<\/p>\n <\/picture> \"GettyImages-2234095376.jpg\" <\/picture>Kirk just moments before he was shot. Credit: Trent Nelson\/The Salt Lake Tribune\/Getty<\/em><\/p>\n

The gunshot occurred at approximately 12:20PM local time, with eyewitness footage capturing the horrifying moment the bullet struck him in the neck, causing blood to immediately erupt from his neck.<\/p>\n

In the horrifying footage, which was widely shared on social media, Kirk’s arms could be seen rising towards his neck moments before he slumped to the floor.<\/p>\n

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Now, neuropsychologist Derek Van Schaik has explained why that movement happened and whether Kirk would have known he had been shot before he died.<\/p>\n

Taking to YouTube, Van Schaik explained: “Many have speculated his arms moving upward towards his chest is due to a phenomenon known in forensic science as decorticate posturing.”<\/p>\n

He added: “However, that’s unlikely.”<\/p>\n <\/picture> \"Kirk <\/picture>An expert has revealed whether Kirk would have known he’d been shot. Credit: Chip Somodevilla\/Getty<\/em><\/p>\n

Van Schaik explained that decorticate posturing happens when “higher brain areas like the cerebral hemispheres are badly damaged, cutting off voluntary motor control.”<\/p>\n

As Kirk’s cerebrum was seemingly unharmed, Van Schaik believes it is “unlikely” the movement was an involuntary motion known as decorticate posturing.<\/p>\n

“An immediate loss of blood to the brain does not typically result in immediate decorticate posturing,” he revealed.<\/p>\n

“Instead, loss of blood to the brain would have led to rapid unconsciousness and flaccid collapse.<\/p>\n

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“Therefore, his arms instantly moving up like that after being hit was apparently due to an instant involuntary defensive reflex.”<\/p>\n

He likened it to the involuntary movement a person would make if someone scared them, where the person would likely jerk their arms up to defend their head and body.<\/p>\n

As for whether Kirk would have known he was about to die, Van Schaik explained: “When someone suffers a catastrophic wound to the neck that destroys a carotid artery and jugular vein, the mind only has a fleeting window to possibly register what happened.<\/p>\n

“However, in Charlie’s case, and after analyzing the footage with a digital timer, he was conscious for no more than four tenths of a second after impact. Far too fast for his brain to even register what had happened to him.”<\/p>\n