Image from a New York protest via video screenshot
By Global News Service
On July 6, 36-year-old Black woman Sonya Massey was shot and killed by white police officer Sean Grayson after inviting the police into her own home, seeking protection from a potential intruder. On July 22, body camera footage was released to the public of Massey’s killing.
Protests have erupted over the past few weeks across the country, including in major cities such as New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago. In Springfield, Illinois, where Massey was killed, her family members mobilized the community in a mass action, converting Massey’s last words to officer Grayson into a chant: “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus!”
In the released body camera footage, two officers berate Massey in her home, ordering her to retrieve her identification despite her not being a suspect in any crime. In fact, it was she who called the police and invited them into her own home because she feared for her safety. While in Massey’s home, police officers also ordered her to check on the boiling water on her stove. While Massey was doing as she was ordered, Grayson appears to have become agitated, stating that he was moving “away from your hot steaming water.”
Massey then states, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.” Grayson replies, “You better f-cking not, I swear to God, I’ll f-cking shoot you right in your f-cking face,” and subsequently does just that, shooting three times at Massey’s head, killing her.
from the Peoples Dispatch / Globetrotter News Service
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