Baby Killed, AG Clears

Police car roof with lights, officers in background. — Photo: Shutterstock

A one-year-old is dead, the state called the shooting justified, and the officer still walked away from the badge.

Story Snapshot

The Mississippi Attorney General said the shooting was justified and filed no charges.
State investigators said the driver sped toward officers before shots were fired.
Body-camera video showed the car moving as officers aimed and fired.
The officer resigned days after the clearance, deepening public distrust.

What The State Says Happened

The Mississippi Attorney General’s Office announced the shooting was a justified use of force. No criminal charges will be filed against the officer who fired the shots that killed one-year-old Kohen Wiley. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation led the probe and released a redacted report and video from body cameras and Walmart security. The state’s account says officers responded to an alleged shoplifting call and the driver then sped toward them, prompting gunfire.

Body-camera footage reviewed by national outlets showed officers with guns drawn as the vehicle moved. The officer fired multiple times as the car appeared to angle toward police. That video, while edited for public release, matches the core state claim that a moving vehicle presented a fast, close threat. The Bureau’s involvement matters. A statewide agency, not the local department, ran the criminal investigation before the Attorney General’s decision.

Why The Resignation Still Haunts The Case

The officer, identified in reports as Hunter Foster, resigned after the Attorney General cleared him of criminal wrongdoing. The interim police chief also resigned, according to separate coverage, adding to the sense of a department in turmoil. Resignation does not prove misconduct. It does, however, leave a vacuum that policy and leadership should fill. When a baby dies, silence from the top reads as indifference. Clear, public administrative findings would help restore trust.

Citizens want to know two things: Did officers follow the law, and did they follow policy. The state answered the first with “justified,” but the public still lacks a point-by-point accounting. How close were officers to the vehicle. Where did they stand. How many shots were fired and in what sequence. Was the threat still active on the final shot. These are not idle questions; they decide whether each trigger press met policy and common sense.

The Family’s Challenge And The Shot That Won’t Go Away

The family, represented by attorney Ben Crump, rejects the state’s conclusion. They argue the fatal bullet entered from the side and that the officer was not in imminent danger when he fired that shot. They say the video lines up with their independent autopsy, which, they claim, shows a right-to-left path. They maintain that at least the side-entry shot was not justified, even if the first moments looked tense.

Mississippi Attorney General: Police "Justified" to Shoot 1-Year-Old

A police investigation into alleged stolen diapers and baby clothes k*lled a 1-year-old Black boy in Mississippi, enraging many over yet another state-sanctioned m*rder of Black children.

Kohen Wiley was… pic.twitter.com/Bo85S34P5p

— The Spearhead (@Spearhead_Af) October 26, 2026

Kohen’s mother, Alessio Wiley, said the driver did not steer toward officers and that she warned police a baby was inside the car. Coverage quotes a policing expert who argued the officer should not have shot at the vehicle under any circumstances. Community leaders called the death a breaking point in a city already on edge. These claims do not erase the state’s finding, but they show why many want an outside review and full, unedited evidence release.

The Hard Problem With Cars As Weapons

Shootings involving moving vehicles split experts because everything changes in a second. A car can become a deadly weapon. Yet shooting at a moving driver often fails to stop the car and puts everyone at more risk. Some agencies warn officers to get out of the path instead of firing unless there is another deadly threat. Analysts who viewed this case also split. One saw a deadly weapon heading toward officers. Another criticized the officer’s position and decision to shoot.

American conservative values lean on two pillars here. Back the rule of law and back clear standards that value life. The state made its call on criminal law. That settles charges, not trust. The next step should be sunlight. Release as much evidence as possible without harming privacy or the case record. Publish the department’s policy review in plain language. Show training fixes if needed. Good cops want that clarity, and good citizens expect it.

What Accountability Must Look Like Next

Public confidence grows when leaders close the loop. The department can explain where officers stood, why they fired, and whether each shot matched policy. Legislators and city leaders can demand a timeline, not a talking point. If the family’s side-entry claim holds, the agency should address whether the final shot met policy and tactics for moving cars. If it did, say why. If it did not, say what changes now prevent it.

Mississippi cleared the criminal bar. The moral bar is higher. A child died during a call that started as alleged shoplifting. The officer resigned. The city is raw. The fastest path to order is not spin; it is proof. Put the facts on the table, fix what failed, and write policy that keeps officers and families out of the line of fire next time.