Police Kill 1-Year-Old Boy in Walmart Parking Lot Near Memphis

Officers opened fire on a vehicle during a shoplifting response in Senatobia, Mississippi, killing toddler Kohen Wiley and critically wounding the driver.

Police Kill 1-Year-Old Boy in Walmart Parking Lot Near Memphis

A shoplifting call at a Walmart in Senatobia, Mississippi, ended in tragedy when police gunfire killed a one-year-old boy in the parking lot.

On Sunday afternoon, June 14, officers responded to a theft report at the Walmart store near Memphis. According to NBC News, police fired at a vehicle as it moved through the lot, believing it was connected to the suspect. Inside the car were one-year-old Kohen Wiley, his mother, and a family friend who was driving.

The child was struck and rushed to hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The driver was also hit and suffered critical injuries. No officers were injured during the incident.

The family's attorney, Ben Crump, stated that the mother tried to warn officers that a baby was in the car before the shots were fired. Another lawyer, Marquell Bridges, said the mother had no criminal record and was neither involved in nor witnessing any crime that day.

Police claimed in a statement that two adults and the child ran from the store to the vehicle and attempted to leave quickly. Officers tried to stop the car, but the driver allegedly sped toward them, nearly hitting one officer, which prompted the shooting.

Mississippi Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell said at a press conference that body-camera footage and other evidence would not be released until the investigation is complete. Walmart said it is cooperating with law enforcement.

On Tuesday, June 16, large protests erupted outside the Walmart and at city hall. Demonstrators accused officers of racial bias, and police reportedly used tear gas to disperse the crowd, according to Mississippi Today.

Source: Topky.sk

Source: Google News SK