Video shows moments leading up to police fatally shooting toddler

Kohen Wiley died during a police shooting in a Walmart parking lot in Senatobia, Mississippi. Police officers had been told that a suspected shoplifter was trying to drive away. The incident matters because the person killed was a 1-year-old child who was riding in the vehicle.

Five officers ran from the Walmart and surrounded the silver-colored sedan. They repeatedly shouted for the driver to stop. The driver, a friend of Wiley’s mother, moved forward and nearly hit one officer. At that moment, one officer opened fire on the car. Wiley was taken to a local hospital and pronounced dead, according to police.

Wiley’s mother said she held him up to show officers that a child was inside. Her lawyer said the women reject the shoplifting accusation, and neither has been charged. Mississippi’s attorney general later found the use of force justified, while the family continues seeking the body-camera footage.

Five law enforcement officers responded after being informed that a suspected shoplifter was attempting to drive away from the Walmart. Their response happened quickly, with the officers running out of the store toward a silver-colored sedan in the parking lot.

The officers surrounded the vehicle and repeatedly yelled, “stop the car.” The woman driving did not stop. Instead, she drove forward, and the video shows the sedan nearly hitting one of the officers. One officer then opened fire on the car. Kohen Wiley, a 1-year-old passenger, was struck and later died at a local hospital.

This sequence is central to the official review because it shows what happened immediately before the shooting. The attorney general concluded that the officer’s use of force was justified. The family disputes the shoplifting allegation and says Wiley’s mother tried to show officers that a child was inside the vehicle.

Body-camera video is recorded from an officer’s wearable camera. Surveillance video usually comes from fixed cameras around places such as stores or parking lots. Both can preserve visual evidence of an encounter, including who was present, what people did, and how events unfolded.

In this case, the footage reportedly shows five officers leaving Walmart, surrounding a silver sedan, shouting for it to stop, and reacting when the vehicle moved forward. It also shows the moment one officer opened fire. Body-camera recordings may capture officers’ perspectives and words, while surveillance footage can provide a broader view of the parking lot.

Investigators can compare these recordings with witness accounts and other evidence to assess timing and decisions. The article says the video was verified but not independently obtained by CBS News. The state planned an official release after Wiley’s family viewed it, and the family had demanded access to the body-camera footage.

Attorney General Lynn Fitch announced that no criminal charges would be filed against the Senatobia officer who opened fire. Her office said it had completed its review and found the use of force justified. That decision matters because it determines whether the officer will face state criminal prosecution for the shooting.

The article describes the key events considered in the review. Five officers surrounded the sedan and ordered the driver to stop. The driver moved forward and nearly hit one officer. An officer then fired, striking Kohen Wiley, who later died. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation and presented its findings to the attorney general.

The article does not state the complete legal analysis behind the conclusion. The family disputes the shoplifting allegation and wants the body-camera footage released. The state said it would officially release the video after Wiley’s family viewed it, allowing the public to examine more of the encounter.

The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation handled the initial investigative work after the shooting. The article says it launched an investigation immediately. Its role was to gather and review information about what happened during the Walmart parking-lot encounter.

After completing that work, the bureau presented its findings to Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office. The attorney general’s office then reviewed the incident involving one Senatobia Police Department officer. It announced that the use of force was justified and that no charges would be filed.

This division separates fact-finding from the charging decision described in the article. The investigation produced findings, while the attorney general made the final announcement about criminal prosecution. The family and lawyer Ben Crump continue to seek the body-camera footage. The Mississippi Department of Public Safety said it would officially release the video after the family viewed it.

A decision not to file criminal charges means the reviewing prosecutor will not bring a criminal case against the officer based on the available investigation. The officer therefore does not face the state criminal prosecution described in that decision. In this case, Mississippi’s attorney general said the use of force was justified.

The decision followed an investigation by the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation. The attorney general’s office reviewed the findings after an officer shot at a car leaving Walmart. The footage shows the vehicle moving forward and nearly hitting an officer before the gunfire. Kohen Wiley, who was 1 year old, was killed.

The decision does not resolve every dispute about the incident. Wiley’s family and lawyer Ben Crump reject the shoplifting accusation and have called for the body-camera video to be released. The Mississippi Department of Public Safety said it would release the video officially after the family viewed it. The article does not describe any separate civil or administrative proceedings.

A generally recognized legal standard allows police to use deadly force when they reasonably believe a person poses an imminent threat of death or serious physical injury to an officer or another person. The threat must be immediate, not merely possible or based only on past conduct. This standard is broader than simply suspecting someone of a crime.

In the reported incident, officers surrounded a sedan and ordered the driver to stop. The driver moved forward and nearly hit one officer. One officer then fired at the car, striking 1-year-old Kohen Wiley. Mississippi’s attorney general later determined that the use of force was justified, though the article does not provide the office’s full legal analysis.

The video and investigation are important because they may show whether the perceived danger was immediate and how the encounter unfolded. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation presented its findings to the attorney general. The family continues to challenge the conclusion and seek release of the body-camera footage.