Vice President Kamala Harris to speak with family of Illinois woman killed by deputy

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Family members of a woman who was shot and killed in an interaction with deputies after calling 911 about a prowler will speak with Vice President Kamala Harris.

Attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the family of Sonya Massey, did not specify when or how the parties will meet but said Harris will speak with them.

In a Tuesday morning statement, the vice president said she and her husband “send strength and prayers to Sonya’s family and friends, and we join them in grieving her senseless death.” She called on Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act .

Massey, 36, was killed in the early morning hours of July 6 after she’d called 911 to report a suspected prowler. In body-cam footage showing her final moments , Massey is heard apologizing to Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office deputy Sean Grayson seconds before he shot the Black woman three times in her home, with one fatal blow to the head.

Grayson was indicted last week by an Illinois grand jury. He’s pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct.

Vice President Harris’ full statement:

Sonya Massey deserved to be safe. After she called the police for help, she was tragically killed in her own home at the hands of a responding officer sworn to protect and serve. Doug and I send strength and prayers to Sonya’s family and friends, and we join them in grieving her senseless death.

Our thoughts are also with the communities across our nation whose calls for help are often met with suspicion, distrust, and even violence. The disturbing footage released yesterday confirms what we know from the lived experiences of so many – we have much work to do to ensure that our justice system fully lives up to its name.

I join President Biden in commending the swift action of the State’s Attorney’s Office and in calling on Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, a bill that I coauthored in the Senate. In this moment, in honor of Sonya’s memory and the memory of so many more whose names we may never know, we must come together to achieve meaningful reforms that advance the safety of all communities.

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