Police Officer Resigns After Bodycam Video Shows Fatal Shooting of 1-Year-Old Kohen Wiley Outside Walmart

A Mississippi police officer who fatally shot a one-year-old boy inside a moving car has resigned from the police department, days after authorities released body-camera footage showing the moments leading up to the tragedy.

Hunter Foster, a former officer with the Senatobia Police Department, resigned in October 2026 following the June 14 shooting of Kohen Wiley in a Walmart parking lot in Senatobia, Mississippi.

The incident began when officers were inside the Walmart investigating an unrelated report involving a man allegedly harassing customers. During that time, a store employee alerted them that two women suspected of fraudulent transactions were leaving the premises.

According to investigators, officers rushed outside as the women entered a vehicle. The car began reversing and then moved forward while officers shouted commands for the driver to stop.

Three shots fired in seconds

Body-camera footage released by the Mississippi Department of Public Safety on October 22 shows Foster approaching the vehicle as it moved through the parking lot.

The video captures him firing three shots into the car. All three shots came from Foster’s weapon.

Kohen was sitting in the front passenger seat in his mother’s arms. His mother, Vellesiya Wiley, later said she raised her baby to make officers aware that a child was inside the vehicle.

Kohen was struck and suffered fatal injuries. The driver, identified in reports as Latoya Ferrell, was also shot and seriously injured. The vehicle eventually reached a nearby hospital, where Kohen was pronounced dead.

The footage has intensified public debate about the circumstances surrounding the shooting and whether the use of deadly force was necessary.

State officials ruled the shooting justified

On October 19, Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch announced that the state investigation had determined Foster’s use of force was justified.

The investigation concluded that the driver moved the vehicle toward officers, creating an immediate threat. Based on that determination, Foster will not face criminal charges in connection with the shooting.

Foster’s attorney, Martin Zummach, defended his client’s actions, saying the officer had no choice but to fire because the vehicle was moving toward him.

The Wiley family’s attorneys strongly disagree with the state’s conclusion. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump has argued that the situation escalated too quickly and that officers could have pursued the vehicle through other means rather than opening fire.

The family is seeking a federal investigation by the Department of Justice and wants Foster permanently decertified as a law enforcement officer.

Resignation does not end the family’s fight

Senatobia Mayor Greg Graves confirmed that Foster had resigned, with the city’s board of aldermen accepting his resignation on October 21.

Foster’s attorney said the resignation was made in the interest of the city and to allow the community to begin healing. He also said Foster was deeply affected by the child’s death and maintained that the officer did not know a baby was inside the vehicle.

Crump responded that resigning was not sufficient accountability and insisted that the family would continue seeking answers.

The controversy has also drawn attention to Foster’s previous law enforcement career. An investigation by Action News 5 found that he had been named in two earlier excessive-force lawsuits involving incidents at other agencies. One case ended in a confidential settlement, while the other was dismissed. The allegations in those lawsuits were not findings of misconduct.

For Kohen’s family, the loss remains devastating. The child was only one year old, and his death has left relatives demanding a fuller examination of the decisions made during the brief encounter outside Walmart.

The resignation marks a major development in the case, but the family’s push for federal scrutiny and further accountability continues.