The June shooting in Senatobia, Mississippi, led to plenty of protests and calls for transparency regarding the one-year-old toddler’s death. His mother, Vellesiya Wiley, said investigators never interviewed her regarding her son’s death.
Following months of calls for justice for one-year-old Kohen Wiley in Mississippi, the state’s Attorney General concluded that the officers involved in the shooting that led to his death were justified.
“Today, the Office of the Attorney General announced it has completed the review of a June 14, 2026, incident in Senatobia involving one officer with the Senatobia Police Department,” Lynn Fitch, Mississippi’s Republican attorney general, said in a statement. “In this incident, the Attorney General’s Office found the use of force was justified. Pursuant to Section 45-1-6 of the Mississippi Code, the review followed an investigation by the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation.”
Officers from the Senatobia Police Department responded to a shoplifting call at a local Walmart in June, where they allege they saw Vellesiya Wiley, Kohen’s mom, carrying her son as she and a family friend left the store, got into their vehicle and began driving away. According to the police report, Wiley stood accused of stealing diapers and baby clothes.
The Mississippi Department of Public Safety has yet to release surveillance footage of the shooting or the body cam footage from officers. The only footage from the incident that has been made public is from a bystander shortly after the shooting. Still, it did not show shots being fired toward the vehicle or the vehicle driving toward officers.
Neither Vellesiya Wiley nor her friend was charged with shoplifting.
Earlier this month, Vellesiya said that the MBI never interviewed her during their investigation, and the toddler’s grandmother learned of Fitch’s decision on Facebook. According to her, neither state nor local law enforcement officials have contacted them about the AG’s decision.
Attorney Ben Crump, representing the Wiley family, says he wants the surveillance footage released.
“A 1-year-old baby was shot and killed by a police officer, and now the state of Mississippi says that use of force was justified,” Crump said in a news release. “How can anyone accept that conclusion when Kohen’s family and the public still have not been allowed to see the body-camera footage? This is a department whose chief was fired after reports of racial slurs in his text messages, and whose officer faced a complaint alleging a racially offensive remark two days before he shot Kohen. If the footage supports the state’s decision, release it. We will not stop fighting until this family gets the truth.”
Recently, the Senatobia Board of Aldermen unanimously fired Harold Vanderford, the city’s former police chief, after multiple outlets confirmed he used racial slurs in private text messages.
More About:News
Weekly New Episodes
Stream Now
