The family of 1-year-old Kohen Wiley, who was fatally shot when a police officer fired into a moving vehicle in Mississippi, stated Thursday that they do not believe the shooting was justified after reviewing videos from officers’ body-worn cameras.
Kohen's maternal grandmother, Veronica Roberson, expressed her disbelief during a news conference, stating, "The word ‘justified’ has haunted me... There’s no justification for that." The family's civil rights attorney, Ben Crump, echoed these sentiments, arguing that the officers' response was excessive and reckless.
The shooting occurred in June in a Walmart parking lot in Senatobia, Mississippi, as officers pursued two women accused of shoplifting. Kohen would have celebrated his second birthday in November.
Earlier this week, the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office cleared Sgt. Hunter Foster of criminal wrongdoing, concluding that the shooting was a justified use of force. Roberson stated she learned of this decision through the news and called the lack of direct notification, coupled with leaked footage, a "slap in the face."
Crump contended that the shooting was not justified and questioned the officers' tactics. He noted that Kohen's mother, Vellesiya Wiley, and her friend, who was driving, had not been charged and disputed claims that the vehicle was driven toward officers. Crump stated, "Diapers are something a mother needs for a child. Diapers should never cost a baby their life." He added, "This decision sends a message that a Black baby boy, his life, is not as valuable as the white diapers that he is wrapped in."
Martin Zummach, an attorney for Foster, asserted that the footage vindicates his client, claiming the officer was in danger from the moving vehicle and had "no choice" but to fire. Zummach stated, "She came right at Hunter Foster and the other officer and he had to shoot his weapon."
However, Crump countered that the footage shows the fatal shot came from the side of the car, disputing Foster's claim of imminent danger. An independent autopsy commissioned by the family reportedly reached the same conclusion. An image of the vehicle reveals its shattered right front passenger window.
Portions of body-worn camera footage were published Wednesday by Darkhorse Press. The videos depict five officers approaching the vehicle with firearms drawn as Vellesiya Wiley, holding Kohen, and her friend enter and start the car. The vehicle reverses, strikes another car, and then moves forward as Foster steps in front of it. Foster appears to move out of the way of the car and fires his weapon, striking the front passenger side window where Kohen was seated.
Use-of-force experts offered diverging opinions on the incident. Charles “Joe” Key, a former Baltimore police lieutenant, suggested the shooting was a justifiable split-second decision by Foster as the vehicle approached him. John P. Gross, an expert on police use of force against moving vehicles, criticized Foster's tactics, stating that an accusation of shoplifting did not warrant deadly force against a fleeing suspect.