The legal team for the family of a 1-year-old who was fatally shot as police in Mississippi responded to a shoplifting call at a Walmart said Wednesday that a preliminary autopsy indicated that the bullet that hit him entered through the car’s side, raising new questions about whether the shooting was justified.Limited time: Save 25% on NBC News subscriptionGet exclusive reporting, live Q&As and ad-free reading.Attorneys Ben Crump and Van Turner, who are representing the family of Kohen Wiley, shared preliminary findings from an independent autopsy completed at the family’s request at a news conference in the north Mississippi community of Senatobia, about 40 miles south of Memphis.Crump said District of Columbia-based forensic pathologist Dr.Roger Mitchell determined that Kohen died from a gunshot wound to the torso.The details were shared with reporters Wednesday at the West Gilmore St.
Church of Christ in Senatobia, where Kohen’s visitation took place just days earlier.As Crump walked through Mitchell’s report, the 1-year-old’s paternal grandparents held signs with a picture of the child and the message “Justice for Baby Kohen” and became emotional, wiping their eyes.Few details have been released in the two weeks since the June 14 shooting.
State authorities have said that police were responding to a shoplifting call at a Walmart when an officer fired at the car Kohen was in.The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation has said the shooting unfolded when responding officers arriving at the Walmart saw “two subjects and a juvenile child fleeing from the store into a vehicle.”Kohen’s mother was a passenger in the car her friend was driving.
Authorities said the officer fired after the driver drove toward police.Kohen’s mother has disputed that account.
Authorities said the driver was also injured in the shooting.Crump said the pathologist noted injury patterns on Kohen’s body caused by debris in the bullet’s wake and displayed a pictur...