Protesters Demand Justice Outside Senatobia Walmart Where Wiley Was Shot On Sunday, Officers On The Scene Launched Tear Gas At The Crowd
The officer involved in the shooting death of one-year-old Kohen Wiley in Senatobia, Mississippi, has been placed on administrative leave as protests continue and the child’s family demands answers.
The mayor and Senatobia Board of Aldermen confirmed the officer’s leave status, though his name has not been released publicly. The decision came one day after protesters gathered outside the Walmart where Wiley was shot following an alleged shoplifting complaint involving a box of diapers.
On Tuesday evening, protesters gathered outside the Senatobia Walmart, chanting for justice for Wiley. Officers wearing gas masks were stationed near the grocery-side entrance of the store before tear gas was launched at the crowd, forcing demonstrators to disperse.
The protest outside Walmart was one of several demonstrations held in the area, including gatherings at City Hall and the Tate County Courthouse.
Family Disputes Police Account Of Shooting
Wiley was with his mother, Vellesiya Wiley, and her friend when they left the Walmart on Sunday afternoon. Police said officers responded to a shoplifting complaint and alleged that the driver of the vehicle Wiley was in drove toward them, prompting an officer to fire.
Wiley was shot and later died at a hospital. The driver was also shot and hospitalized in critical condition.
Witnesses have disputed the police account. In an interview with ABC24 Memphis, Vellesiya Wiley said her friend was driving away from officers, not toward them. She said she lifted her son into the air to show officers there was a baby in the vehicle, but officers still opened fire.
Kohen was shot in the rib cage, while the driver was shot in the arm and thigh, according to Wiley. She also said the alleged shoplifting incident had nothing to do with them.
Wiley’s family is calling for the release of Walmart surveillance footage and the officer’s body camera footage as the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation reviews the case.
At the Tate County Courthouse, Mississippi Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell told a gathered crowd that the investigation would be transparent, but said video of the shooting would not be released until the investigation is complete.
“It’s important to us (investigators) to interview witnesses without the threat of intimidation,” Tindell said. “It’s important that we keep civility during this process so we can get to the bottom of it and analyze all the evidence and ultimately make it available to you all.”
The shooting has renewed calls for accountability in police use-of-force cases, especially when children and bystanders are caught in the middle of police encounters that begin with low-level allegations.
