A Mississippi police officer who fatally shot a 1-year-old boy during a confrontation outside Walmart has resigned, just days after state investigators ruled that his use of deadly force was justified.
The resignation of Senatobia Police Sgt. Hunter Foster was confirmed Friday, October 23, by Mayor Greg Graves, following the release of police bodycam footage showing the moments leading up to the death of Kohen Wiley.
The decision has renewed outrage from the toddler’s family, who insist the video raises serious questions about whether the officer was in immediate danger when he opened fire.
Kohen was killed June 14, 2026, in the parking lot of a Walmart in Senatobia, a small Mississippi community approximately 40 miles south of Memphis, Tennessee.
Police had responded to a report of suspected shoplifting involving diapers and baby clothes when officers encountered two women attempting to leave the parking lot with the child.
According to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, officers tried to stop the vehicle, but the driver allegedly accelerated toward them, nearly striking one officer.
Foster fired into the moving car, fatally wounding Kohen, who was sitting on his mother’s lap in the front passenger seat.
The driver was also wounded in the shooting.
Kohen was taken to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
His mother, Vellesiya Wiley, has denied stealing anything from Walmart. Neither she nor the woman driving the vehicle has been charged in connection with the alleged shoplifting.
For months, the circumstances surrounding the shooting remained the subject of intense public scrutiny.
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation examined the incident before forwarding its findings to Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office.
On October 19, the attorney general announced that prosecutors would not pursue criminal charges against Foster, concluding that his use of force was justified under state law.
But the controversy intensified three days later when authorities released bodycam footage from the officers involved.
The recordings show police approaching the vehicle as the women attempt to leave the parking lot.
Officers can be heard repeatedly ordering the driver to stop as the car backs up and strikes another parked vehicle.
The vehicle then begins moving forward, with Foster positioned near its path.
According to the Associated Press, the footage shows Foster standing in front of the vehicle before moving aside as it approaches.
He then fires through the front passenger-side window, where Kohen was sitting in his mother’s arms.
The entire confrontation unfolded within seconds.
Foster’s attorney maintains that the officer believed he was in immediate danger and had no choice but to fire.
However, civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represents Kohen’s family, disputes that explanation.
Crump argues that the video shows Foster had moved away from the vehicle’s direct path before firing, raising questions about whether deadly force was necessary at that moment.
The family’s legal team also commissioned an independent autopsy, which they say supports their interpretation of the shooting.
Those findings have become central to their demand for an additional investigation.
The competing accounts have left a fundamental question unresolved: Did Foster reasonably believe his life was in danger when he fired, or could the confrontation have ended without deadly force?
Mississippi prosecutors have concluded that the evidence does not support criminal charges, but Kohen’s relatives believe the decision fails to hold the officer accountable.
The controversy took another turn Friday when Foster resigned from the Senatobia Police Department.
His resignation was confirmed by the town’s mayor, although officials did not publicly explain the circumstances surrounding his departure.
The officer’s attorney later said Foster made the decision in hopes of helping the community and police department move forward.
For Kohen’s family, however, leaving the department is not enough.
“Officer Foster’s resignation is hardly a step toward accountability, and it is certainly not justice,” Crump said.
The family is now calling on the U.S. Department of Justice to conduct an independent investigation into the shooting.
They are also demanding that Foster lose his law enforcement certification, which would prevent him from continuing to work as a police officer elsewhere in Mississippi.
As of Friday, state officials confirmed that Foster remained certified despite his resignation.
The case has also drawn renewed attention to the leadership of the Senatobia Police Department.
Former Police Chief Harold Vanderford was fired in September after investigative reports revealed that he had used racist language in private text messages.
Those reports added to concerns expressed by Kohen’s family about the department’s culture and its handling of the shooting.
In another development, interim Police Chief Angelica Maze also resigned, according to reporting published Saturday.
The leadership changes have come during a period of intense scrutiny for the department, although officials have not established that the resignations were directly connected.
Meanwhile, Kohen’s mother continues grieving a child who was only beginning his life.
She previously said she tried to make officers aware that her baby was inside the vehicle as the confrontation unfolded.
Her attorneys argue that the presence of a young child should have been a critical consideration before officers used deadly force.
The case has sparked broader debate about police shootings involving moving vehicles, particularly when officers position themselves in the path of a car.
Law enforcement policies differ across jurisdictions, but many departments restrict firing at moving vehicles unless officers face an immediate threat that cannot reasonably be avoided.
The Mississippi attorney general’s decision addressed whether Foster’s conduct warranted criminal prosecution under state law. It does not prevent federal authorities from reviewing the incident or the family from pursuing civil litigation.
For now, no federal investigation has been publicly announced.
Kohen’s family says it will continue seeking answers and accountability, regardless of the officer’s resignation.
