Anger Escalates as Protesters Call for Immediate Arrest of Officer Following De-adly Sh00ting of Toddler at Mississippi Walmart
SENATOBIA, Miss. (WREG) – A Mississippi police officer has been placed on administrative leave after an officer-involved shooting at a Walmart in the town of Senatobia left a 1-year-old child dead.
The child, identified as Kohen Wiley, was struck by gunfire on Sunday afternoon, after police responded to a shoplifting report at the Walmart, according to the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation. The responding officers told MBI they saw two women and a child leave the store and jump into a car, and attempted to stop the vehicle. But police claimed the driver began heading in their direction and nearly hit them, at which point at least one of the officers fired a shot at the car, according to MBI.
The vehicle sped away, but later arrived at a local hospital where Kohen was pronounced dead.
City officials on Tuesday night placed the officer involved in the shooting on administrative leave. That officer has not been publicly identified.
Kohen Wiley (Courtesy of family)
The shooting prompted dozens of community members to rally outside City Hall on Tuesday, calling for the officer’s arrest and termination. Many later gathered outside the Senatobia Walmart to protest.
Deputies in Tate County, Mississippi, later deployed tear gas at the protesters.
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“It was just a blatant shooting. A reckless, careless, callous, might have even been cowardice, act,” said Aretha Lester, one of the protestors. “So how do you explain that? You can’t explain that to a family. You can’t explain that even to a supervisor and to a commander.”
“Being Black is the weapon. … They try to demonize us,” said Chekymbria Allen, another protester. “No matter if you’re 1 year old or 60 years old — if you’re Black, you’re already the bottom tier to them.”
In a presser held at the Tate County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday afternoon, Sean Tindell, Commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, highlighted the status of the investigation.
In 2022, a law was passed that requires MBI to investigate officer-involved shootings, Tindell said. Once evidence and statements are gathered by five agents working the case, it will be handed over to the D.A.’s office, according to Tindell.
He said that when the investigation is complete, bodycam and dashcam footage will be available to the public upon request.
“The purpose for that is because we believe that transparency creates accountability. And with accountability, we can maintain public trust. Those policies and procedures will be followed in this case as well,” Tindell said.
He asked the public to remain patient as the investigation is conducted and to maintain civility so that witnesses are not intimidated into giving statements.
1-year-old child killed and 1 person injured after Mississippi police shoot at car
On Tuesday afternoon, National Civil Rights Attorney Ben Crump announced that he and Attorney Van Turner will be representing Kohen’s family.
“A 1-year-old child is dead because police officers in Mississippi opened fire on a car in a crowded Walmart parking lot,” Crump said in a statement released Tuesday. “Kohen Wiley was a baby. His mother, who has not been charged with any crime, says she was trying to communicate to officers that there was a baby in the car. They fired anyway, leading to the death of an innocent 1-year-old. We intend to seek justice for baby Kohen and the life that was stolen from him.”
