In this image taken from body camera video released by Illinois State Police, Sonya Massey, left, speaks with a former Sangamon County deputy outside her home in Springfield, Illinois, on July 6, 2024 Chat with Sean Grayson.
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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Sonya Massey shot an Illinois sheriff’s deputy three times, one fatally, at the Black woman’s home last week. Body camera footage released shows Sonya Massey ducking and apologizing.
An Illinois grand jury last week indicted Sean Grayson, a 30-year-old white former Sangamon County deputy sheriff. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree murder, aggravated assault with a firearm and official misconduct.
The video corroborates prosecutors’ earlier description of a tense moment when Grayson yelled across the Macy’s counter to put down a jug of hot water. He then threatened to shoot her, Macy ducked and stood up briefly as Grayson shot her.
Authorities said Messi, 36, had earlier called 911 to report a suspicious prowler. Video shows two deputies responding to her home in Springfield, 200 miles (322 kilometers) southwest of Chicago, just before 1 a.m. on July 6. They first walked around the house and spotted a black SUV with broken windows in the driveway.
After the officers knocked on the door, it took Macy three minutes to open it, and she immediately said, “Don’t hurt me.”
She seemed confused as they spoke at the door, repeating that she needed help, mentioning God and telling them she didn’t know who owned the car.
Inside the home, officers appeared irritated as she sat on the couch, checked her purse and asked for identification so they could complete a report before leaving. Grayson then pointed to a pot on the stove.
“We don’t need a fire here,” he said.
Macy immediately stood up and walked over to the stove, moving the pot closer to the sink. She and Grayson appeared to be laughing over her plate of “steaming hot water” before she unexpectedly said: “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.”
“You better (expletive) not or I swear to God I’m going to (expletive) shoot you in the (expletive) face.” He then pulled out his 9mm pistol and told her to put down the pot.
“Well, I’m sorry,” Macy said. In body camera footage of Grayson, he points the weapon at her. She lowered her head and raised her hands.
In this image taken from body camera footage released by Illinois State Police on Monday, July 22, 2024, former Sangamon County Deputy Sheriff Sean Grayson, left, points a gun at Sonya Ma West.
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Grayson was still in the living room, facing Macy, separated by a counter that separated the living room from the kitchen. Prosecutors said the separation allowed Grayson to maintain “distance and relative cover” from Massey and the hot pot.
After Grayson shot her, he dissuaded his partner from getting a medical kit to save her.
“You can go and get it, but it’s just a headshot,” he said.
He added: “What else can we do? I don’t know how to wash my (expletive) face with scalding (expletive) boiling water.”
Noticing that Messi was still breathing, he relented and said he would also take his equipment. “The least we can do is try to stop the bleeding,” another officer said.
Grayson told police, “She came at me with boiling water, and she came at me with boiling water. She said she was going to rebuke me in the name of Jesus, and then she came at me with boiling water.”
At a news conference Monday afternoon, the Grayson family’s attorney, civil rights attorney Ben Crump, called Grayson’s “revisionist” rationale “disingenuous.”
“She needs a helping hand. She doesn’t need a bullet in her face,” Crump said of Messi.
When asked why Macy told Grayson “I blame you in the name of Jesus,” Crump said she had received treatment for mental health issues. He noted that she called on God’s name from the beginning of the meeting and asked for her Bible after deputies walked inside.
Speaking at Messi’s funeral on Friday, Crump said the footage, which he and his family had seen, would “shock the American conscience.”
This undated photo provided by the family’s attorney in July 2024 shows Sonya Massey of Springfield, Illinois.
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Macy’s father, James Wilburn, asked that the investigation and prosecution in the county court system be fully disclosed and transparent to the public.
“The only time I will see my children again is when I leave this world,” Wilburn said. “And I don’t want anyone else in America to be in this league.”
Grayson was fired last week and is being held without bail at the Sangamon County Jail. If convicted, he faces a sentence of 45 years to life in prison for murder, six to 30 years for assault and two to five years for misconduct.
This booking photo provided by the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office shows Sean Grayson on July 17, 2024, in Springfield, Illinois.
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His attorney, Daniel Fultz, declined to comment Monday.
President Joe Biden said in a statement that he and First Lady Jill Biden are praying for Macy’s family “as they face this unimaginable and senseless loss.”
“When we ask for help, all of us Americans — no matter who we are or where we live — should be able to do so without fear for our lives,” Biden said. “Sonia died of a At the hands of police officers, it’s a reminder that Black Americans often face concerns about their safety that the rest of us don’t.”
Macy’s death is the latest example of black people being killed by police in their homes in recent years.
In May, a Hispanic Florida deputy shot and killed Roger Fordson after the senior Air Force airman opened his Fort Walton home with a downward-pointed handgun. beach house door. Deputy Eddie Duran was fired.
In 2019, a white police officer in Fort Worth, Texas, shot and killed Adityana Jefferson through the back window of her home after responding to a non-emergency call reporting that Jefferson’s front door was open. Former police officer Aaron Dean was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to nearly 12 years in prison.
In 2018, a white Dallas police officer mistook Botham Jean’s apartment for his own and shot and killed the unarmed Botham Jean. Former police officer Amber Guyger was found guilty of murder and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Crump represents families in each case as part of his efforts to hold police officers accountable for killing black people. Crump also represents relatives of Earl Moore, a Springfield man who died in December 2022 after being strapped face down on a stretcher. accusation.
