Officer Resigns After Fatal Shooting of 1-Year-old in Mississippi

WHO:

PBS - Senatobia Mayor Greg Graves confirmed Sgt. Hunter Foster’s resignation.

PBS - Mississippi Department of Public Safety spokesperson Alex Gibert said Foster remained certified as a police officer.

PBS - Foster had worked for the Southaven Police Department for two years, then the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office until October 2024, before joining Senatobia’s police department about five months later.

PBS - Foster and 12 other Southaven officers were accused in a 2021 federal lawsuit of civil rights violations during a 2019 arrest of two Black men outside a Waffle House; the officers denied wrongdoing.

BBC - Martin Zummach, an attorney representing the officer, defended his client’s actions in a statement.

The Guardian - Civil rights attorney Ben Crump represents Kohen Wiley’s family and called for a federal investigation and for Hunter Foster to be decertified.

TMZ - The officer was identified as Sgt. Hunter Foster.

NBC News - Kohen Wiley was the 1-year-old child killed in the shooting.

NBC News - A Mississippi police officer who fired the shot that killed Wiley resigned, according to a city official who spoke to NBC News.

CBS News US - The Mississippi attorney general’s office determined that the use of force in the shooting was justified.

WHAT:

PBS - The Southaven Police Department settled the civil-rights lawsuit in 2022 for an undisclosed amount.

PBS - An independent autopsy commissioned by Kohen Wiley’s family concluded the fatal shot came from the side of the car.

PBS - Videos show five officers approaching the parked car with guns drawn; it reversed, crashed into a parked vehicle, then accelerated forward as Foster stepped in front of it.

PBS - The vehicle’s wheels turned away from Foster, who appeared to put his hands on the hood while jumping out of the way; the car continued driving after he fired.

PBS - The group of officers was at Walmart for an unrelated incident before an employee alerted them that two women were running from the store.

PBS - Senatobia’s board of aldermen fired Police Chief Harold Vanderford after reports alleged he used racist slurs in private text messages.

The Guardian - Foster was placed on leave after the shooting.

The Guardian - The Mississippi Department of Public Safety released body-camera and surveillance footage.

The Guardian - Foster ran out of the Walmart with other officers after an employee reported that shoplifters were fleeing.

The Intercept - Newly released body-camera footage shows the officer firing into the passenger side of the car as it passed him.

BBC - Martin Zummach said, “The driver of the vehicle was attempting to kill those 5 officers,” and added that his client “had no choice but to discharge his weapon”.

The Guardian - The Senatobia board of aldermen accepted Foster’s resignation, which took effect immediately.

The Guardian - Body-camera and surveillance footage showed three shots fired, all from Foster’s gun; he injured the vehicle’s driver and killed Kohen.

The Guardian - Crump said, “The bullet that killed Kohen Wiley was not justified,” and said the decision sent a message that “a Black baby boy, his life, is not as valuable as the white diapers that he is wrapped in.”

NBC News - The Mississippi police officer who fatally shot 1-year-old Kohen Wiley resigned.

CBS News US - The shooting was deadly and involved the use of force.

WHERE:

PBS - Senatobia is about 40 miles (65 kilometers) south of Memphis, Tennessee, and has a population of about 8,000.

The Guardian - The shooting occurred at a Walmart in Senatobia.

TMZ - The shooting occurred in a Walmart parking lot.

CBS News US - The shooting occurred in Mississippi.

NBC News - The officer was a Mississippi police officer.

WHEN:

The Guardian - The board of aldermen accepted Foster’s resignation on 21 October.

The Guardian - Foster was placed on leave on 16 June, days after the 14 June shooting.

The Guardian - Kohen Wiley would have turned two on 1 November.

WHY:

The Guardian - Officials alleged that Kohen’s mother and a friend stole diapers; neither woman had been charged.

CBS News US - The shooting stemmed from an alleged shoplifting incident.

HOW:

The Guardian - Foster aimed his gun at the vehicle within seconds of leaving the store.

TMZ - Foster opened fire on a car.

NBC News - The officer fired the shot that killed Wiley.

CBS News US - The Mississippi attorney general’s office determined that the use of force was justified.

(UPDATED October 24, 2026 15:59 UTC)

Sgt. Hunter Foster has resigned from the Senatobia Police Department after firing the shot that killed 1-year-old Kohen Wiley in a Walmart parking lot in Mississippi. The city’s board of aldermen accepted his resignation, which took effect immediately; Foster had been placed on leave after the shooting. Body-camera and surveillance footage show officers approaching a car after a Walmart employee reported alleged shoplifting. The car reversed, crashed into another vehicle, then accelerated forward as Foster stepped in front of it. Video shows three shots fired, all from Foster’s gun, as the car passed; the driver was injured, and Wiley, a passenger, was killed. Mississippi’s attorney general’s office ruled the use of force justified. Foster’s attorney said the driver was trying to kill five officers and his client had no choice but to fire. Wiley’s family attorney called for a federal investigation and Foster’s decertification. Foster remains certified as an officer.

(UPDATED October 24, 2026 00:08 UTC)

A Mississippi police officer who fatally shot 1-year-old Kohen Wiley has resigned, and Senatobia’s board of aldermen accepted the resignation. Newly released body-camera and surveillance footage shows Sgt. Hunter Foster leaving a Walmart with other officers after an employee reported suspected shoplifters fleeing. Within seconds, Foster aimed at a car and fired three shots into its passenger side as it passed, injuring the driver and killing Kohen. Officials alleged Kohen’s mother and a friend stole diapers, but neither woman had been charged. The Mississippi attorney general’s office concluded the use of force was justified. Foster’s attorney, Martin Zummach, defended the shooting, saying the driver was trying to kill five officers and Foster had no choice but to fire. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, representing Kohen’s family, called for a federal investigation and for Foster to lose his certification, saying the bullet that killed the child was not justified.

(UPDATED October 23, 2026 23:13 UTC)

A Mississippi police sergeant who fatally shot 1-year-old Kohen Wiley has resigned, as newly released video shows him firing into a car as it passed. The shooting happened in a Walmart parking lot in Senatobia and followed allegations that Wiley’s mother and a friend stole diapers; neither woman had been charged. Body-camera and surveillance footage showed three shots, all fired by Sgt. Hunter Foster. The driver was injured, and Kohen was killed. Mississippi’s attorney general’s office determined that the use of force was justified. Foster’s attorney, Martin Zummach, defended the shooting, saying the driver was attempting to kill five officers and Foster had no choice but to fire. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represents the family, called for a federal investigation and for Foster to be decertified. He disputed the finding that the shooting was justified.

(UPDATED October 23, 2026 20:08 UTC)

A Mississippi police sergeant who fatally shot 1-year-old Kohen Wiley has resigned, and Senatobia’s board of aldermen accepted his resignation effective immediately. The officer, identified as Hunter Foster, opened fire on a car in a Walmart parking lot after an alleged shoplifting incident. Officials alleged Wiley’s mother and a friend stole diapers, but neither woman had been charged. Body-camera and surveillance footage showed three shots, all fired by Foster; the driver was injured, and Kohen was killed. Mississippi’s attorney general’s office determined that the use of force was justified. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represents Wiley’s family, called for a federal investigation and for Foster to be decertified. Crump said the bullet that killed Kohen was not justified, and criticized the decision as suggesting a Black child’s life was less valuable than the diapers he was wrapped in.

(UPDATED October 23, 2026 19:10 UTC)

A Mississippi police officer who fatally shot 1-year-old Kohen Wiley has resigned, according to a city official. The officer was identified as Sgt. Hunter Foster. The shooting happened in a Walmart parking lot and stemmed from an alleged shoplifting incident. Foster opened fire on a car, and the shot he fired killed Wiley. The child was one year old. Mississippi’s attorney general’s office reviewed the shooting and determined that the use of force was justified. The resignation followed the deadly encounter, though the facts provided do not specify when Foster left the department. The case involved a police shooting, the death of a young child, and an official determination that the force used was justified.

(UPDATED October 23, 2026 18:24 UTC)

A Mississippi police officer who fired the shot that killed 1-year-old Kohen Wiley has resigned, according to a city official. The shooting stemmed from an alleged shoplifting incident and involved the officer’s use of force. Wiley was the child killed in the shooting. The Mississippi attorney general’s office has determined that the use of force was justified. The resignation and the attorney general’s finding are separate outcomes of the deadly incident. The available details identify Wiley as one year old and specify that a Mississippi police officer fired the fatal shot. They also say the incident began with an alleged shoplifting case, though they do not describe the allegation in further detail. The attorney general’s office reviewed the use of force and concluded it was justified. The officer has since resigned.