Body camera footage released by Mississippi investigators shows Sgt. Hunter Foster fired shots that killed 1-year-old Kohen Wiley from the side of a car as it moved past him, contradicting the state's conclusion that the shooting was justified.
Foster positioned himself in front of the vehicle, aimed his gun, and fired into the passenger side window after the car was already moving past him and posed no threat, according to the newly released videos. Dr. Roger Mitchell, a forensic pathologist hired by Kohen's family, determined in June that the fatal bullet was most likely fired into the side window, entering the child's right side and exiting his left.
The incident began when Walmart employees reported two people running from the store, later identified as Vel'lesiya Wiley (the child's mother) and driver Latoya Ferrell. Five officers, including Foster, ran to the parking lot and surrounded a gray sedan. As the car moved forward and turned left, Foster stumbled to the passenger side and fired three shots in rapid succession.
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation's 10-page report, which the state attorney general relied upon to clear Foster, described the car as "sped toward the officers" but did not note that Foster was beside the vehicle when he fired. The report also redacted Kohen Wiley's cause of death.
Foster resigned from the Senatobia police department on Wednesday. His lawyer told CNN that "the driver of the vehicle was attempting to kill those 5 officers, and Hunter Foster had no choice but to discharge his weapon."
At a Thursday press conference, Kohen's grandmother Veronica Roberson challenged the justification. "You shot my grandbaby from the side of the car," she said. "How are you in danger?"
Residents of Senatobia had called for months for body camera and surveillance footage to be released. The family learned of the videos through social media before state officials showed them the footage.