Fox News host Brian Kilmeade faced widespread criticism after suggesting on air that people with mental illness and those experiencing homelessness should be killed.
The remark came during a Wednesday appearance on Fox & Friends, when Kilmeade and co-hosts Lawrence Jones and Ainsley Earhardt were discussing the Aug. 22 murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska in Charlotte, North Carolina. During the exchange, Kilmeade said, "Or involuntary lethal or something, just kill them," a comment that circulated widely on social media after a clip of the segment went viral.
Jones had earlier suggested that people refusing programs to address homelessness and mental health should be locked up; Earhardt responded, "Yeah, Brian, why did it have to get to this point?" but did not directly challenge Kilmeade's comment, according to a transcript of the segment reported by the Daily Mail. Kilmeade also criticized Democratic prosecutors and urged voters in North Carolina to support Republican Senate candidate Michael Whatley in 2026, saying cities with large homeless populations were voting for the "wrong leaders."
The on-air remark drew condemnation from elected officials and advocates. California Gov. Gavin Newsom posted a Bible verse, Proverbs 21:13, on X in response to the clip. Virginia Rep. Don Beyer said in a statement that America’s homeless population includes "over a million children and tens of thousands of veterans," and added, "Nobody deserves to be murdered by the government for mental illness or poverty. These Fox hosts are calling for mass murder—it’s sick."
Veterans' advocates and social media users criticized the comment for appearing to target people with post-traumatic stress disorder and other service-related conditions. Sarah Longwell, publisher of the conservative outlet The Bulwark, also posted expressions of shock on social media. The segment has prompted debate over rhetoric on cable news and the responsibilities of hosts when discussing crime, homelessness and mental health.
The murdered woman, identified by authorities as 27-year-old Iryna Zarutska, was stabbed on a Charlotte bus on Aug. 22. A suspect, Decarlos Brown, has been accused in the case and faces criminal charges. Zarutska’s death has drawn attention from Republican lawmakers who have criticized the city's Democratic leadership, a point raised by Kilmeade on the program as he called for voters to "wake up" in North Carolina.
The clip and ensuing fallout come amid heightened national scrutiny of local criminal-justice policies and the political debate over how cities address homelessness and mental health. Critics said Kilmeade’s comment crossed a moral and legal line by appearing to endorse extrajudicial killings, while supporters of tougher law-and-order approaches said the segment reflected frustration with local leaders.
The Daily Mail, which first reported the exchange, said it had sought comment from Fox News. As of publication, Fox News had not issued a public response to the reports cited by the Daily Mail. The network has in past instances issued statements addressing controversial on-air comments by hosts, and the episode is likely to prompt renewed questions about editorial oversight and the role of opinion programming on cable news.
The segment has generated calls from lawmakers and advocacy groups for clearer standards on rhetoric that targets vulnerable populations, and it added to ongoing national conversations about homelessness, mental-health services and public safety policy ahead of the 2026 election cycle.