Former Senatobia, Mississippi police officer Hunter Foster has resigned after shooting and killing 1-year-old Kohen Wiley in a Walmart parking lot in June. Body-camera footage released Thursday shows Foster running out of the store and aiming his weapon within 13 seconds of learning about fleeing shoplifting suspects. He fired three shots, injuring the driver and killing Kohen, who was in his mother’s arms in the front passenger seat.
The Mississippi Attorney General’s Office ruled the shooting justified, finding that the driver drove into officers. The family’s attorneys dispute that conclusion and say they will petition the Department of Justice to investigate. Kohen’s grandmother, LaSandra Williams, said she is having a difficult time with the word “justified.” Attorney Ben Crump is calling for Foster to be decertified.
The case has drawn national attention to how quickly officers escalate to gunfire and to the questions families are left asking afterward. For Gulf Coast communities, it’s also a window into the kind of police review process that could play out in any jurisdiction. If you’ve followed this story, what would you want to see from the investigation? Let us know.
