![Officer's Use of Force on Sonya Massey Deemed Unjustified as Footage Surfaces [VIDEO]](https://odunews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/VS-SonyaMassey-SearchX-003-1024x576.jpg "Officer's Use of Force on Sonya Massey Deemed Unjustified as Footage Surfaces [VIDEO]")
In a troubling incident captured on video, Mr. Grayson, a law enforcement officer, is seen engaging in a confrontation with Sonya Massey, which culminated in a fatal shooting. The video shows Mr. Grayson commenting on a pot on the stove, stating, “we don’t need a fire while we’re here.” Ms. Massey moves to remove the pot, laughing about her “steaming hot water,” before stating, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.”
The situation escalated when Mr. Grayson threatened her with explicit language, drew his pistol, and shouted for her to drop the pot. Ms. Massey apologized and ducked, but Mr. Grayson shot her. He then justified his actions by saying, “I’m not taking hot [expletive] boiling water to the [expletive] face.”
The Sangamon County State’s Attorney’s Office declared on Monday that Mr. Grayson’s use of force was unjustified. President Joe Biden expressed his condolences to Ms. Massey’s family, stating, “Sonya Massey, a beloved mother, friend, daughter, and young Black woman, should be alive today.” He highlighted the broader issue of safety fears among Black Americans, noting that Sonya’s death serves as a grim reminder of these realities.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul described the footage as “horrific” and urged calm as the legal process unfolds. Lawyers for Ms. Massey’s family, including prominent civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, praised the swift prosecutorial response. Crump stated, “The footage is going to shock the conscience of America. It is that senseless, that unnecessary, that unjustifiable, that unconstitutional.”
