Crimeupdated 1h ago2 min read
Lynn Fitch Says Mississippi Police Use of Force Was Justified in Kohen Wiley Shooting
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Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch says officer's use of force was justified. The shooting occurred in Senatobia during a Walmart shoplifting investigation, killing Kohen Wiley.
State finds force justified
Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch said her office found the use of force was justified in the June 14 shooting that killed 1-year-old Kohen Wiley outside a Walmart in Senatobia, Mississippi. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation said officers responded to a shoplifting call about nappies and baby clothes, and officers tried to stop a vehicle after encountering two women and a child walking towards a car.
Kohen was killed while sitting on his mother’s lap in the passenger seat, and the bureau said an officer opened fire after the driver allegedly drove at officers. Ben Crump, the Wiley family attorney, objected to the finding and said, "How can anyone accept that conclusion when Kohen's family and the public still have not been allowed to see the body-camera footage?"
Family disputes police account
Vellesiya Wiley denied that she or Latoya Ferrell were stealing, and the BBC said neither she nor the driver of the vehicle have been charged with a crime. Wiley said she lifted her son up from her lap to show officers he was there before he was hit by gunfire, while the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation said the driver drove toward officers and an officer fired.
The Associated Press lawyer Martin Zummach told the BBC that the driver had "tried to kill" his client and that "He had no choice but to fire his weapon,". Crump pressed for transparency and told ABC News, "How can anyone accept that conclusion when Kohen’s family and the public still have not been allowed to see the body-camera footage?"
No charges, footage still missing
Fitch issued a letter stating her office would not file charges against Hunter Foster or any other officers because there was "insufficient evidence of criminal conduct." It was not immediately clear if Foster would return to work in Senatobia, and state authorities did not say if or when they would release body cam footage or other surveillance video.
Police have not released any footage from the shooting, including from officer-worn body cameras or CCTV recordings taken from the parking lot. Ben Crump released an independent autopsy indicating Wiley was shot from the side of the car, not the front, which contradicted officers’ statements that Ferrell headed towards them.