Sonya Massey: Illinois sheriff's deputy kills Black woman as horrific footage sparks national outrage

Springfield, Illinois - Horrific footage of an Illinois sheriff's deputy fatally shooting a Springfield woman in the face has caused widespread shock and anger at the latest case of deadly police violence against Black people.

Bodycam footage of Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Grayson shooting Springfield resident Sonya Massey in her home has caused widespread outrage.
Bodycam footage of Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Grayson shooting Springfield resident Sonya Massey in her home has caused widespread outrage.  © via REUTERS

Bodycam footage of the July 6 incident released Monday shows Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Grayson killing 36-year-old Sonya Massey, who had called the cops in fearing a possible break-in at her home.

Massey, a 36-year-old Black woman reportedly suffering from paranoid schizophrenia, had a pot of water boiling on the stove at the time Grayson and his colleagues entered her kitchen.

In the video, Grayson orders her to put the pot away before stepping back. Massey asks him where he is going, to which Grayson responds, "Away from your hot steaming water."

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"Away from the hot steaming water?" Massey retorts, before adding mildly: "Oh, I'll rebuke you in the name of Jesus."

Grayson immediately draws his gun and shouts: "You better fucking not, I swear to God I’ll fucking shoot you right in your f***ing face" as Massey drops behind a counter saying, "I'm sorry!".

The deputy then fires three shots, hitting her below the eye.

"That's a headshot. She's done," he says. Massey was later pronounced dead at a hospital.

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Grayson was arrested and charged with first-degree murder for the July 6 shooting.
Grayson was arrested and charged with first-degree murder for the July 6 shooting.  © via REUTERS

With Grayson arrested on charges of first-degree murder, outrage was growing at the brutal killing, as well as indications that cops may have tried to cover it up.

The Guardian reported that police radio captured an unidentified voice saying Massey's fatal gunshot wound had been "self-inflicted."

Grayson is also caught repeatedly lying about the woman attacking him with boiling water.

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Reactions poured in after the bodycam footage was released, with President Joe Biden saying Massey's family "deserves justice."

"Sonya's death at the hands of a police officer reminds us that all too often Black Americans face fears for their safety in ways many of the rest of us do not," he wrote on X.

"Congress must pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to increase trust and accountability in America's police force."

The police reform bill, which includes a ban on choke holds and restricts immunity for cops, has been stuck in legislative limbo since failing in the Senate.

It is named after George Floyd, who was murdered by Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin in May 2020. Since then, thousands of people have been killed in police shootings, with 2023 setting a new record of 1,247 deaths, a number in which Black people are overrepresented.

Cover photo: via REUTERS

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