- Police fired at a vehicle, fatally hitting a 1-year-old child despite the mother’s pleas
- Authorities claim the vehicle drove toward officers, but the family disputes that account
- Society outraged, demands accountability and release of video evidence
This story is absolutely heartbreaking and if justice is not served properly, there will be hell to pay.
BOSSIP previously reported on the June 14 shooting, which occurred after officers from the Senatobia Police Department and the Tate County Sheriff’s Office responded to reports that a woman stole a box of diapers from a local Walmart. According to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, officers confronted a vehicle the accused was driving in the parking lot. Authorities allege the vehicle drove toward the officers and nearly hit one of them, prompting an officer to open fire.
According to reporting by The Guardiana Mississippi police officer has been placed on administrative leave during one of his rounds, fatally striking a 1-year-old Kohen Wiley during the questionable confrontation. The family has retained the legal counsel of ubiquitous civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who released the following statement to the public.
A one-year-old child has died after Mississippi police officers opened fire on a car in a crowded Walmart parking lot.
“Kohen Wiley was a baby. His mother, who has not been charged with any crime, says she tried to communicate to the officers that there was a baby in the car. They fired anyway, leading to the death of an innocent one-year-old. We intend to seek justice for baby Kohen and the life that was stolen from him.”
The officer in question has not been publicly identified yet, but we’re sure social media will solve the problem soon enough. City officials confirmed the officer has been removed from duty for the time being, which is standard procedure after a fatal police shooting. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is conducting an independent investigation and reviewing witness statements, body camera footage, dash cam video and Walmart surveillance footage.
The tragedy has led to protests in Senatobia, with protesters demanding justice for Cohen and the release of all video evidence. The Wiley family has retained civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who criticized the officers’ actions and called for accountability. State officials have urged the public to remain patient while investigators determine exactly what happened. Good luck with that. The community is not going to sit idly by and hope that the historically unreliable police department does its job. Pressure will be applied.
Meanwhile, according to WREGthe child’s mother, Vellesiya Wiley, talks about exactly what happened in the Walmart parking lot from her perspective. She was sitting in the passenger seat of the vehicle her friend was driving when she saw the police running towards them with their guns drawn and aimed at them.
“I picked my baby up and tried to show them he was in the car,” Wiley says in the video. “When I put my baby down, it was three to four shots.”
Wiley also denied police claims that the car drove toward the officers in an attempt to run them over, saying the officers were standing on her right side while the vehicle was traveling on the left.
“They just shot on purpose at the car,” she said.
The Walmart company released a statement about the fatal incident:
“We are devastated by the loss of such a young life. The safety of our employees and customers is a top priority. We are working closely with the Mississippi Bureau of Investigations and will refer any further questions to authorities.”
Anything less than criminal charges against the officer(s) involved will be met with intense nationwide backlash and protests. Local prosecutors had best choose wisely.
