By Sarah Roebuck
Police1
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Body-worn camera video has been released in a fatal officer-involved shooting that led to a former Sangamon County Sheriff’s deputy being charged with murder, NBC News reports.
The incident unfolded on July 6 when a woman called to report a possible “prowler” at her home, Illinois State Police said.
Body camera video released on July 22 by the Illinois State Police shows now-former Deputy Sean Grayson and his partner arrive at the home of Sonya Massey. The deputies step inside Massey’s home and begin asking questions related to her report. As Massey speaks with the deputies, they ask her for her name and a form of identification.
As Massey searches for her ID, Grayson notices a pot filled with water on the woman’s stove and asks her to dump it out, video shows. Massey walks over to the stove and grabs the pot and makes a comment about the deputies taking a step back. The deputies told her they moved back to be away from the hot steaming water, video shows.
Video captured Massey then saying, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.”
“You better f*****g not. I swear to God I’ll f*****g shoot you right in the f*****g face,” Grayson can be heard saying as he draws his weapon.
Massey then ducks and both deputies tell the woman to drop the pot of water, video shows. Three gunshots can be heard as Grayson continues to command Massey to drop the pot.
The second deputy tells Grayson he’s going to grab his medical kit, video shows.
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“Nah, headshot dude, she’s done,” Grayson replies. “You can go get it but that’s a headshot.”
Grayson can be heard telling the second deputy that he can try and help Massey, but there’s not much they can do.
“We can at least try and hold the, stop the blood,” the second deputy can be heard saying. The deputy then walks into the kitchen, finds a towel and holds it to the woman’s head.
When Grayson re-enters the kitchen area, he asks another deputy who arrived at the scene, “Is there anything we can do for her?” The deputy replies, “No.”
The third deputy asks Grayson, “Where’s the gun?”
“No, she had boiling water and came at me with boiling water,” Grayson replies.
Massey was taken to a hospital where she was declared dead, NBC News reports.
A state police use-of-force review concluded that although Grayson was justified in pointing his weapon at Massey for compliance, the shooting was unjustified because he advanced toward Massey, putting himself at risk of injury, according to NBC News.
Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell said Grayson was fired.
Following the release of the body-worn camera video, the sheriff issued the following statement:
“The body-worn camera footage has now been released, and the public can see what we saw: Sonya Massey lost her life due to an unjustifiable and reckless decision by former Deputy Sean Grayson. Grayson had other options available that he should have used. His actions were inexcusable and do not reflect the values or training of our office. He will now face judgment by the criminal justice system and will never again work in law enforcement. Ms. Massey needlessly lost her life, and her family deserves answers. I trust the legal process will provide them. This incident does not reflect the values or actions of our law enforcement community. It was a tragic decision made by an individual who had the training, tools and experience to know better. We are committed to upholding a standard that prevents such tragedies from occurring in the future.”
Grayson was indicted on July 17 on charges of first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct, the prosecutor said.
