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Mississippi AG Says Police Use of Force Justified in 1-Year-Old's Death
· Confirmed
In Short: The Mississippi Attorney General's Office said in a statement on Monday that the Senatobia Police Department was justified in its use of force during a police-involved shooting last June that led to the death of a 1-year-old.
According to the statement, the Attorney General's Office found the use of force was justified, a conclusion that has drawn significant criticism from the boy's family and their attorney, Ben Crump.
Kohen Wiley was shot and killed outside of a Walmart in Senatobia, Mississippi, on June 14 after an officer fired into a vehicle when those in the vehicle were allegedly evading police.
Interim Chief of Police Angelica Maze of the Senatobia Police Department acknowledged the Mississippi attorney general’s decision to close the case, stating, 'We recognize the seriousness of this incident and its impact on everyone involved, their families, our officers, and the community.'
The Senatobia Police Department released a statement saying, 'We appreciate the community’s patience throughout the review process.'
Ben Crump, Wiley’s family attorney, said in a statement, '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 continued to call for the release of body camera footage, stating, 'How can anyone accept that conclusion when Kohen’s family and the public still have not been allowed to see the body-camera footage?'
The Senatobia Police Department responded to the Attorney General's decision, and Crump emphasized the need for transparency and justice, saying, 'Shoplifting a box of diapers ends up with you shooting into a moving vehicle. This 1-year-old baby couldn't put his hands up. A 1-year-old baby is not a threat to officers with a gun.'
The Attorney General's Office announced its ruling Monday on the officers’ use of force, stating that no criminal charges would be brought against the officer involved.
The family of Kohen Wiley, who has been protesting for justice in the small town of Senatobia, expressed disappointment with the ruling, with one family member saying, 'We were hoping for justice from the Attorney General’s office and we have not received it, so we’ll keep pressing forward; we’ll keep fighting for justice for baby Kohen.'
The case remains active, and additional arrests may be pending, according to authorities.
What's confirmed
- The Mississippi Attorney General's Office said in a statement on Monday that the Senatobia Police Department was justified in its use of force during a police-involved shooting last June that led to the death of a 1-year-old.
- The attorney general's office said in its statement on Monday, "In this incident, the Attorney General's Office found the use of force was justified." In a statement released in September by Senatobia Interim Chief of Police Angelica Maze, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigations handed its investigative findings into Wiley's death to the Mississippi Attorney General's office, as required by law.
- "How can anyone accept that conclusion when Kohen’s family and the public still have not been allowed to see the body-camera footage?"
- The fatal shooting of a 1-year-old by a Mississippi police officer who fired at a vehicle while responding to a shoplifting call was a “justified” use of force, the state attorney general said Monday.
- “We will not stop fighting until this family gets the truth.” There was no immediate response from Wiley’s family, which has for months been taking part in protests demanding justice for the slain boy in the small town 40 miles south of Memphis, Tennessee.
- Sophie Bates, Associated Press Sophie Bates, Associated Press Jack Brook, Associated Press Jack Brook, Associated Press JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi's attorney general says a Senatobia officer was justified in using force when he responded to a shoplifting call and fired at a moving vehicle that investigators said was driving toward police, killing a 1-year-old boy who was inside the car.
- Tasia Fortune, a 29-year-old mother of four, was found dead on Aug. 3, and police are investigating her death as a homicide The mother of a Black woman found hanging from a tree in Jackson, Miss., is continuing to speak out about her daughter’s death as authorities investigate the circumstances surrounding it.
What's still developing
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- “Our founder has literally wiped the tears of Kohen’s grandmother,” the statement said.
- "This shooting was almost certainly unjustified," Gross told the AP.
- Police have since arrested 65-year-old Terence Anderson on suspicion of possession of a weapon by a convicted felon in connection with the case, according to WLBT and records reviewed by PEOPLE.
- Wiley said her friend then got into the vehicle, but as her friend began to reverse the vehicle, she lifted up her son “trying to show them that he was in the car” because police officers drew their guns.
- Last year, the town’s aldermen voted to replace the police chief who was serving at the time of the 10-year-old’s arrest with Harold Vanderford, who served when Wiley was killed.
- At his funeral, Kohen was remembered as “goofy,” a fan of the cartoon character Bluey and a beloved baby with a family excited for his future, NBC News reported.