What Happened to Sonya Massey? The Police Bodycam Footage, Explained

In the early morning of July 6, 2024, Sonya Massey called police to report a suspected intruder on her Springfield, Illinois, property. The 36-year-old mother of two died a short time later from a gunshot wound to the head, and Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Grayson has been charged with her murder.

The shocking series of events was captured on shocking police bodycam footage, which has now been made public (content warning: some viewers may find the footage disturbing). Meanwhile, the fact that Grayson, a white officer, shot Massey, who was black, after verbally abusing her and without reasonable threat of harm has been roundly condemned in the media and by government officials. The police bodycam footage was released only after days of protests in the Springfield area.

In a statement referring to Massey’s killing, President Biden said, in part:

Sonya Massey, a beloved mother, friend, daughter, and young Black woman, should be alive today. Sonya called the police because she was concerned about a potential intruder. When we call for help, all of us as Americans should be able to do so—no matter who we are or where we live—without fear for our lives. Sonya’s death at the hands of a responding officer reminds us that Black Americans too often experience fear for our safety in ways that many of us do not…”

via CBS News

Timeline of the Sonya Massey shooting

Before Sonya Massey was shot, bodycam footage shows Springfield police searching her property for a suspected intruder. Police investigate a car with broken windows in her driveway, but inform Massey that they found no one on her property. At one point, Massey says something unintelligible to Sean Grayson, possibly “Don’t hurt me,” to which Grayson responds, “Why would we hurt you? You called us.”

Grayson was alone at Massey’s house processing paperwork related to the phone call when he saw boiling water on the stove in Massey’s kitchen and asked Massey to take the water off the stove. Massey turns off the burner, but then picks up the pot. Grayson tells her to put it down, but Massey inexplicably says, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.”

Grayson tried to warn Massey further, telling her that he would shoot her if she did not comply, using profanity. Eventually, Massey apologized and tried to take cover, but Grayson fired anyway. The other officer tried to help Massey, who was still breathing, but Grayson can be heard saying that it was a gunshot wound to the head, and, “She’s done.” Massey was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

In the bodycam footage, Grayson tells another officer on the scene, “… I’m not going to take a pot of boiling water to my f***ing face… She said she was going to reprimand me in the name of Jesus and she came at me with boiling water.” Notably, Grayson didn’t turn on his bodycam until after he fired his weapon. The majority of the footage was captured by the other officer.

What are the charges against Sean Grayson?

On July 17, Sean Grayson was arrested and charged with five counts stemming from the shooting of Sonya Massey, including three counts of first-degree murder. Grayson, who pleaded not guilty, was fired from the sheriff’s office. Speaking to CBS News, Craig Futterman noted that officers typically don’t let people in similar situations into kitchens because of variables like knives and pans.

“First of all, I saw a woman who was clearly a little upset, but she didn’t look or give any reasonable impression that she was a threat. Would a reasonable officer in that situation reasonably believe that their life was being threatened, like they would pull out their weapon and point it at her and threaten her life? It’s a clear no,” Futterman said after reviewing the bodycam footage.

Massey family attorney Ben Crump told NBC Chicago that Massey had a history of mental health issues. “She needed a helping hand. She didn’t need a bullet in the face,” Crump said.