Roughly 100 people marched through Senatobia, Mississippi on Friday morning, their chants echoing down main street as they demanded the release of footage from a police shooting that killed a one-year-old boy earlier this month.
Kohen Kartier Wiley was shot on June 14 when a Senatobia police officer fired into the passenger side of a vehicle where the child sat on his mother's lap. The bullet killed Kohen and wounded the driver. According to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, officers were responding to a report of stolen diapers, though no shoplifting charges have been filed. The child's mother said she paid for the items at self-checkout.
Police justified the shooting by claiming the vehicle drove toward officers in a threatening manner. That account has been disputed by the family and some witnesses, who have also objected to authorities referring to a one-year-old as a "juvenile."
"I watched my baby take his first breath, and I watched my baby take his last breath," Vellesiya Wiley, Kohen's mother, said at a Monday press conference.
The Department of Public Safety has refused to release body camera or security footage while the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation reviews the incident. That decision has become the central flashpoint for protesters, who view it as an obstruction. A public records request identified Sergeant Hunter Foster of the Senatobia police department as one of the officers at the scene.
Friday's march began outside the Walmart where the incident occurred. The store remained closed with doors barricaded, a precaution taken after police deployed teargas on protesters earlier in the week. Demonstrators led the procession with three vehicles, chanting "Justice for him, Kohen Wiley" and "Say his name, Kohen Wiley."
Law enforcement moved quickly to contain the march. A sheriff intercepted the crowd on US Highway 51 and warned leaders they could not stop traffic. The protesters continued, moving slowly enough to minimize disruption but maintaining their course.
What followed was a choreography of obstruction. Each time marchers attempted to reach the police station to hold a press conference, they encountered new barricades or law enforcement vehicles blocking their path. Officers placed barriers to seal off the building from multiple approaches. Marchers adapted, weaving through unexpected streets and past the municipal court office.
Workers at local businesses locked their doors as the procession passed, creating an atmosphere of tension that did not go unnoticed by demonstrators. Tyesha Cox, a family friend, expressed frustration at the response. "It's horrible for them to do the community like this. We got businesses locking their doors like we're trying to harm them," she said. "They just need to listen to the community and let us get justice. If they feel the police did right, then why haven't they released any footage?"
Despite temperatures near 90 degrees and minimal shade, protesters persevered for hours, eventually routing their march through town and back toward the Walmart. Some fast food workers stepped outside to watch and, in several instances, offered encouragement to the group.
Friday evening included a viewing of Kohen's body. Organizers scheduled a town hall featuring Fred Hampton Jr. of the Black Panther Party Cubs, Mississippi organizer Marquell Bridges who led the march, and Baba Akili from Black Lives Matter Grassroots Rapid Response, among others. Kohen's funeral is set for Saturday afternoon.
Author James Rodriguez: "The state's refusal to release footage while expecting the community to trust their account strains credibility, and blocking protesters from even reaching the police station only deepens that divide."
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