The bodycam footage of Sonya Massey's murder was released by Illinois State Police CNN reported yesterday afternoon. The visual evidence of the devastating scene proved to be another striking and sad commonality that left an innocent Black woman dead at the hands of a White police officer. The Department Of Justice (DOJ) has announced it is now investigating the "circumstances" of the shooting.
Massey, 36, called the police to her home in Springfield, Illinois, on the morning of July 6, 2024, because she believed there was a prowler on the premises. Through what has been described as a series of chaotic events, Massey picked up a pot of boiling water and exchanged words with the two officers who arrived on the scene, including Deputy Sean Grayson, who has been charged with firing the shot to the face that ended Massey's life. From the time of the officers' entry into Massey's home to her unlawful murder, the events all took place in a matter of 45 seconds.
In the video, following the shooting, Grayson can be heard trying to justify his actions. He stated that the pot, which Massey dropped moments before being shot, "came right to our feet, too.”
One of the biggest points of contention in this incident is that Grayson allegedly refused to tend to Massey as she lay dying and ordered his fellow officer not to assist as well. Grayson has since been charged with three counts of first-degree murder and one count each of aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct. He has entered a not-guilty plea and was denied pretrial release, according to court records.
The death of innocent Black women at the hands of white officers in their own homes has become all too common occurrence in this nation. Breonna Taylo r was fatally shot in her Louisville, Kentucky apartment on March 13, 2020, when at least seven police officers forced entry as part of an investigation into a drug dealing operation. Atatiana Jefferson was fatally shot inside her home by a police officer in Fort Worth, Texas, on October 12, 2019. A neighbor had called the police on a non-emergency number to alert them that Jefferson's front door was open.
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump is representing Massey’s family. “Until we get justice for Sonya Massey, we rebuke this discriminatory criminal justice system in the name of Jesus,” he said, making reference to Massey's last words to the officers.
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Many people across the globe—from notable figures to outraged citizens— have expressed their hurt over this tragic and too familiar occurrence. Solange Knowles expressed her sadness and dismay over the shooting on X (formerly Twitter): "[F]irst words Sonya Massey said at her front door were 'don’t hurt me'," Knowles writes, adding, "when have those words meant anything when your(sic) [B]lack and woman in this country."
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