Independent Autopsy in Death of 1-Year-Old Kohen Wiley Raises New Questions Over Mississippi Police Shooting

One-year-old Kohen Wiley was killed in a shooting outside a Walmart in Senatobia, MS. Courtesy of Ben Crump Law

News Blend 360

Thurs, July 2, 2026 at 2:47 AM EDT

SENATOBIA, Miss. — The death of 1-year-old Kohen Wiley, who was fatally shot by police outside a Walmart in Senatobia, Mississippi, has taken on new urgency after attorneys for his family released preliminary findings from an independent autopsy that they say challenge the official account of the shooting.

Civil rights attorneys Ben Crump and Van Turner, who represent Kohen’s family, announced during a July 1 news conference that the independent autopsy found Kohen died from what Crump described as a “shotgun wound of the torso.” The autopsy also classified the manner of death as homicide, meaning the death was caused by another person, though that classification does not itself determine criminal liability.

According to Crump, the independent review found that the gunshot wound entered Kohen on the right side of his chest and exited through the left side. Family attorneys argue that the direction of the wound suggests Kohen was struck from the side of the vehicle, not from the front — a key detail because investigators previously said an officer fired after the vehicle allegedly moved toward officers and nearly struck one of them.

Kohen was killed on June 14 after officers responded to a reported shoplifting call at the Senatobia Walmart. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation said officers encountered two adults and a child entering a vehicle and that an officer discharged a weapon after the driver allegedly drove in the direction of officers. Kohen was killed, and another adult in the vehicle was critically injured.

The family has strongly questioned the police account and has repeatedly demanded that authorities release all available video, including police body-camera footage, dashcam footage and Walmart surveillance video. Crump said the family should not have to rely only on the state’s version of events when a child’s life was taken during a police response to an alleged shoplifting call.

The independent autopsy was conducted by Dr. Roger Mitchell, a board-certified forensic pathologist, according to local reports. Crump said the findings showed the shot traveled from Kohen’s right side to his left side and likely caused severe injuries to vital organs. Family attorneys say that trajectory raises serious questions about where the officer was standing and whether the officer was truly in immediate danger when the shot was fired.

The case has sparked grief, protests and growing anger in Senatobia and beyond. Demonstrators have called for justice for “Baby Kohen” and demanded transparency from local and state officials. One protest drew large crowds, and local reports said law enforcement used tear gas to disperse demonstrators in the days after the shooting.

Mississippi Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell has said the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is conducting an independent inquiry and that investigators are gathering evidence and witness statements. He also said video evidence would be released once the investigation is complete.

The officer who fired the fatal shot has not been publicly identified and has been placed on administrative leave, according to local officials. No charges have been announced. The official autopsy report from Tate County had not been completed as of the latest reporting, and the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation declined to comment on the family’s newly released findings.

For Kohen’s family, the independent autopsy is not the end of the fight, but the beginning of a deeper demand for answers. They want to know why police opened fire into a vehicle where a child was present, whether officers followed proper policy, how many shots were fired and whether the alleged threat described by authorities is supported by the video evidence.

The case now stands at the center of a painful question: Could this tragedy have been prevented?

As the community mourns a child who had barely begun his life, the calls for transparency are growing louder. The family, their attorneys and supporters say the public deserves to see the footage, hear the facts and know whether the actions that led to Kohen Wiley’s death were justified.

News Blend 360 will continue following this developing story as investigators review the evidence and the family continues its push for answers, accountability and justice.