Kohen Wiley shooting: Hunter Foster Senatobia police officer cleared in shooting of black 1-year-old boy as Mississippi AG rules ‘force was justified’ in Walmart parking lot shooting at ‘fleeing’ vehicle after claims boy’s mom, Vellesiya Wiley, and Latoya Ferrell had stolen a pack of diapers. To date no charges have been made nor has video of the shooting been shared.
What if they were white…? The police shooting that killed 1-year-old Kohen Wiley as he sat in his mother’s lap in a Walmart parking lot in Senatobia, Miss., in June following allegations of a store shoplifting incident involving the parent, ‘was justified,’ Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office announced on Monday.
‘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,’ the Republican attorney general’s statement said. ‘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.’
Had mom used 1-year-old child as a shield?
Officers were responding to a shoplifting call alleging that Wiley’s mother, Vellesiya Wiley, and Latoya Ferrell had stolen a pack of diapers. The women exited the store with the child as officers arrived, entered their vehicle and began to leave the parking lot. Officers drew their weapons, and Vellesiya Wiley lifted her son up to show the officers that a child was in the car. One officer fired into the vehicle, killing the baby as she held him. A bullet also wounded Ferrell.
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, which investigated the shooting, alleged on the day of the shooting that ‘the driver drove in the direction of the officers, almost striking one.’
The incident led to commentators on social media arguing that Wiley had ‘used her son as a shield’ while officers had their weapons drawn. The mom remained steadfast in her claims that she was trying to warn officers that there was a child in the vehicle.
To date, the Mississippi Department of Public Safety has declined to show the video surveillance of the shooting of Kohen Wiley, neither the body-cam footage nor the overhead video from the Walmart parking lot where Wiley was shot. A short clip from a bystander was posted on the internet shortly after the shooting, showing neither the shots being fired nor the car driving towards officers.
🚨BREAKING🚨: The Mississippi Attorney General has CLEARED the police officer involved in the fatal shooting of 1-year-old Kohen Wiley.
The state determined the officer’s use of deadly force was justified.
BACKGROUND – On June 14, 2026, one-year-old Kohen Wiley was tragically shot and killed by a Senatobia, Mississippi, police officer during an encounter that began with a shoplifting incident at Walmart.
Kohen’s mother, Vellesiya Wiley, had entered the store with another woman and her baby when the theft of diapers and baby clothing occurred. When police confronted the women in their vehicle, authorities say the driver accelerated toward officers, nearly striking one. An officer opened fire, fatally shooting Kohen, who was in his mother’s arms in the passenger seat.
His mother disputes the police account, claiming she lifted Kohen into view specifically to show the officer that a baby was inside the vehicle.
Photos show the mother, Punkin Wiley, posing with cash just two weeks after his death. Presumably during or right after his funeral.
— Sarah Fields (@SarahisCensored) October 19, 2026
How much is a pair of diapers worth?
Neither woman has been charged with a crime, and officials have not released any evidence of shoplifting. Wiley and both women are Black; the officer identified as the subject of the investigation, Hunter Foster, is white.
Of note, Foster faced accusations of making a racially offensive remark to a coworker days prior to Wiley’s shooting. Additionally, two previous incidents in which Foster was accused of police misconduct in court cases surfaced after the shooting. One of those cases was dismissed; the other ended in a confidential settlement.
A spokesperson for the Department of Public Safety confirmed to the Mississippi Free Press that video surveillance footage of the shooting will be released to media organizations in short order via public records requests.
News of the AG’s decision led to outrage in the community and accusations of a cover up along with accusations of racism.
‘There is blood on your hands. Not just Hunter Foster, but everyone that is complicit in the cover-up, including Attorney General Lynn Fitch, and everything that happens as a result,’ Marquell Bridges, a Mississippi activist who is president of the Building Bridges Coalition, told the Mississippi Free Press on Monday after Fitch’s announcement.
Commented the Party for Socialism and Liberation: ‘Translation: the life of 1-year old Kohen Wiley was worth less than a $20 pack of diapers. End the war on Black America!’
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