According to Verite News, the Mississippi Legislative Black Caucus is looking to dislodge their tongue from the cat’s mouth. The family says nobody from the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation has contacted them about the case, including Kohen’s mother, Vellesiya Wiley, who was reportedly holding her only child when officers opened fire. That silence has the family understandably heated. Kohen’s grandmother, Veronica Shanell, publicly pleaded with anyone who witnessed the shooting or knows someone who did to come forward because, at this point, these greiving people have to conduct their own search for the truth.
And Mississippi lawmakers are calling foul, too. Rep. Kabir Karriem, chairman of the Mississippi Legislative Black Caucus, sent a letter to Attorney General Lynn Fitch and Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell demanding “direct, timely and ongoing updates.” Karriem said Kohen’s family should not have to fight the state for information about their child’s death.
“Kohen’s family should not have to fight the State of Mississippi for information about the investigation into their child’s death,” Karriem, a Columbus Democrat, wrote in the two-page letter. It was addressed to state Attorney General Lynn Fitch and Sean Tindell, commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, which oversees the MBI.
The investigation is supposed to determine whether any officers involved could face criminal charges, but two months have passed without meaningful communication with the people most affected.
Meanwhile, authorities have yet to publicly provide the body camera or dashboard footage that could help explain exactly what happened.
What type of law enforcement would let a family stew in the pain of loss and unanswered questions for months without an update or communication at the very least?
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