Grand jury clears officer in shooting death of Jaheim McMillan

The Harrison County grand jury has cleared a Gulfport Police officer of any wrongdoing in the shooting death of Jaheim McMillan.

We want to warn you, the following video may be disturbing to some viewers.

The grand jury, empaneled in September, considered the officer-involved shooting that happened on October 6, 2022.

McMillan died after a shooting at the Family Dollar store in Gulfport on Pass Road.

“After full and deliberate consideration of all the facts and circumstances leading up to the October 6, 2022 shooting of Jaheim McMillan, and the circumstances as they existed at the time of the shooting, the Grand Jury finds no criminal conduct on behalf of the officer involved from the Gulfport Police Department.

“Therefore, we find no further action is warranted by this body.”

The state Attorney General issued a statement regarding the incident after the Harrison County grand jury released its findings:

“The office of the Attorney General completed its review into the October 6, 2022, incident involving an officer-involved shooting in Harrison County and presented it to the Harrison County grand jury earlier this month. The grand jury today reported that it found no criminal conduct on behalf of the officer involved.”

This afternoon, WXXV spoke to Reverend Carl Soto, the co-founder of Black Lives Matter Restoration Polk Inc., about the grand jury verdict. “It’s definitely not surprising. Unfortunately, with the state of Mississippi, Mississippi has enacted these predatory laws that shield law enforcement from true accountability, and Mississippi has a specific law that stipulates that all officer involved shootings must go through the MBI and then from the MBI goes to the attorney general and the attorney general has the ability to decide what they are going to do next.”

Soto said he, McMillian’s mother, and legal counsel are planning a press conference tomorrow to speak more about the findings and the video.

He also said a civil suit will probably be filed against Gulfport police.

Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes said in a statement: “The City of Gulfport extends our gratitude for the efforts put forth in this case by the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, the Attorney General’s office, and the men and women of the Gulfport Police Department. We appreciate the patience of our citizens in waiting for this information to become available. The video and statements speak for themselves. ”