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Bodycam video reveals chaotic scene of deputy fatally shooting Sonya Massey, who called 911 for help

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Bodycam video reveals chaotic scene of deputy fatally shooting Sonya Massey, who called 911 for help

Sonya Massey ducked and apologized to an Illinois sheriff’s deputy seconds before he shot the Black woman three times in her home, with one fatal blow to the head, as seen in body camera video released Monday.

An Illinois grand jury indicted former Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Grayson, 30, who is white, last week. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct.

US POSTAL SERVICE LETTER CARRIER SHOT IN CHICAGO, OFFICIALS SAY

The video confirmed prosecutors’ earlier account of the tense moment when Grayson yelled from across a counter at Massey to set down a pot of hot water. He then threatened to shoot her, Massey ducked, briefly rose, and Grayson fired his pistol at her.

Authorities said Massey, 36, had called 911 earlier to report a suspected prowler. The video shows the two deputies responded just before 1 a.m. on July 6 at her home in Springfield, 200 miles (322 kilometers) southwest of Chicago. They first walked around the house and found a black SUV with broken windows in the driveway.

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It took Massey three minutes to open the door after the deputies knocked, and she immediately said, “Don’t hurt me.”

She seemed confused as they spoke at the door, and she repeated that she needed help, referenced God and told them she didn’t know who owned the car.

Inside the house, deputies seemed exasperated as she sat on her couch and went through her purse as they asked for identification to complete a report before leaving. Then Grayson pointed out a pot sitting on a flame on the stove.

“We don’t need a fire while we’re here,” he said.

In this image taken from body camera video released by Illinois State Police on Monday, July 22, 2024, former Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Grayson, left, points his gun at Sonya Massey, who called 911 for help, before shooting and killing her inside her home in Springfield, Ill., July 6, 2024.  (Illinois State Police via AP)

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Massey immediately got up and went to the stove, moving the pot near a sink. She and Grayson seemed to share a laugh over her pan 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’ll (expletive) shoot you in your (expletive) face.” He then pulled his 9mm pistol and demanded she drop the pot.

Massey said, “OK, I’m sorry.” In Grayson’s body camera footage, he pointed his weapon at her. She ducked and raised her hands.

Grayson was still in the living room, facing Massey and separated by a counter dividing the living room and kitchen. Prosecutors have said the separation allowed Grayson both “distance and relative cover” from Massey and the pot of hot water.

After Grayson shot her, Grayson discouraged his partner from grabbing a medical kit to save her.

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“You can go get it, but that’s a headshot,” he said. “There’s nothing you can do, man.”

He added: “What else do we do? I’m not taking hot (expletive) boiling water to the (expletive) face”

Noting that Massey was still breathing, he relented and said he would get his kit, too. The other deputy said, “We can at least try to stop the bleeding.”

Grayson told responding police, “She had boiling water and came at me, with boiling water. She said she was going to rebuke me in the name of Jesus and came at me with boiling water.”

During a Monday afternoon news conference, the family’s lawyer, civil rights attorney Ben Crump, called Grayson’s “revisionist” justification “disingenuous.”

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“She needed a helping hand. She did not need a bullet to her face,” Crump said of Massey.

Asked why Massey told Grayson, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus,” Crump said she had undergone treatment for mental health issues. He noted that she invoked God’s name from the beginning of the encounter and asked for her Bible after the deputies stepped inside.

During Massey’s funeral on Friday, Crump said the video, which he and the family had already viewed, would “shock the conscience of America.”

Massey’s father, James Wilburn, demanded the county court system be completely open with its investigation and prosecution and transparent with the public.

“The only time I will see my baby again is when I leave this world,” Wilburn said. “And I don’t ever want anybody else in the United States to join this league.”

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Grayson, who was fired last week, is being held in the Sangamon County Jail without bond. If convicted, he faces prison sentences of 45 years to life for murder, 6 to 30 years for battery and 2 to 5 years for misconduct.

His lawyer, Daniel Fultz, declined to comment Monday.

In a statement, President Joe Biden said he and first lady Jill Biden were praying for Massey’s family “as they face this unthinkable and senseless loss.”

“When we call for help, all of us as Americans – regardless of who we are or where we live – should be able to do so without fearing for our lives,” Biden said. “Sonya’s death at the hands of a responding officer reminds us that all too often Black Americans face fears for their safety in ways many of the rest of us do not.”

Massey’s death is the latest example of Black people killed in recent years by police in their homes.

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In May, a Hispanic Florida sheriff’s deputy shot and killed Roger Fortson, when the Air Force senior airman opened the door of his home in Fort Walton Beach armed with a handgun pointed down. The deputy, Eddie Duran, was fired.

In 2019, a white Fort Worth, Texas, officer fatally shot Atatiana Jefferson through a rear window of her home after responding to a nonemergency call reporting that Jefferson’s front door was open. Aaron Dean, the former officer, was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to nearly 12 years in prison.

 

In 2018, a white Dallas police officer fatally shot Botham Jean, who was unarmed, after mistaking his apartment for her own. Amber Guyger, the former officer, was convicted of murder and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Crump has represented families in each case as part of his effort to force accountability for the killings of Black people at the hands of police. Crump also has represented relatives of Earl Moore, a Springfield man who died after he was strapped face down on a stretcher in December 2022. Two emergency medical professionals face murder charges in that case.

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Detroit, MI

Detroit man accused of fatally shooting two men in Tennessee

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Detroit man accused of fatally shooting two men in Tennessee


A Detroit man suspected of fatally shooting two men on a Tennessee highway in November was arrested Monday in Michigan, authorities said.

Dashonn Moten, 28, of Detroit was indicted on 17 criminal counts, including two counts each of first-degree murder and felony murder, Knoxville, Tennessee, police said in a social media post.

Moten is accused of killing Troy Hutchison, 33, of Atlanta and Rodrell Jeter, 25, of Detroit during an incident on the morning of Nov. 16 on Interstate 640 in Knoxville.

Moten also faces one count of attempted murder related to a third victim, a 22-year-old Detroit man, who was critically injured in the shooting, authorities said.

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Detectives believe the victims were traveling from Detroit to Atlanta in a light-color Ford Bronco with a Michigan license plate, according to a press release issued in November. At that time, police were unsure of a motive or the relationship between the suspect and the victims.

Two days after the shooting, the Bronco was found abandoned in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, police said.

Moten was identified as a suspect based on an investigation that included dozen of interviews, a review of cellphone records and anonymous tips, authorities said.

U.S. Marshals took him into custody Monday in the Detroit area, according to authorities. He is expected to be extradited to Knox County.

mreinhart@detroitnews.com

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Milwaukee, WI

Milwaukee County awarded nearly $25 million in federal funding for street safety projects

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Milwaukee County awarded nearly  million in federal funding for street safety projects


Milwaukee County plans to use nearly $25 million in federal funding for more than 60 street safety projects throughout the community. 

The grant funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe Streets and Roads for All program will be used in an effort to reduce crashes along some of the most dangerous roads in the county.

“This is a great opportunity for us to focus on one of the issues that have been affecting Milwaukee County residents, which is reckless driving,” Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley said. 

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The 65 infrastructure projects will be along ten “Corridors of Concern,” or “roadways that have been identified as the most hazardous in the County,” according to a county statement. The work will take place in West Allis, Glendale, Brown Deer, Shorewood, the city of Milwaukee and on multiple Milwaukee County highways. 

Some of the work will include high-visibility crosswalks, traffic signal upgrades, curb bump-outs, intersection upgrades and sidewalk expansions. The funding will also be used for traffic calming projects on three of the county’s “highest-speed corridors.” 

The county expects the projects to reduce “fatal and serious injury crashes” at the intersections and road segments by 26 to 50 percent, according to a statement. The work is anticipated to be completed by 2031. 

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“We don’t want to put something in place that’s going to work for a year and then down the line, all of a sudden, we have to do more studies to figure out how we improve this even more,” Crowley said about the projects.

The city of Milwaukee was also awarded a separate $8 million grant for street safety improvements on portions of North Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and West Forest Home Avenue through the Safe Streets and Roads for All program. That funding will be used to reduce speeding and improve safety for pedestrians and drivers on those corridors, according to a statement from the Milwaukee Department of Public Works. 

Some of the work for that project will include curb extensions, raised crosswalks, raised intersections and improving curb ramps along the roads, according to city engineer Kevin Muhs.

“This is great news,” Muhs said about the grant. “We’re excited to make some good safety and pavement investments on these two corridors.” 

Reckless driving has plagued residents of Milwaukee for years. A 2024 Wisconsin Policy Forum report found traffic fatalities increased by 113.5 percent from 2002 to 2022 in Milwaukee County, while they dropped across the state during the same time period.

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Local leaders have invested millions of dollars to combat the problem over the past few years. Street redesign and engineering projects — known as “traffic calming” projects — can help narrow roads, making it more difficult for drivers to speed.

Muhs said he believes the projects are working, even if some residents have complained about the changes slowing down traffic. 

“Really, what we’re trying to do is manage excessive speeds,” Muhs said. “That’s the goal of all of this.” 

There were 27,400 traffic crashes in Milwaukee County in 2021 , according to a county dashboard. That number fell to 24,600 in 2024.  

The Milwaukee Common Council passed an ordinance in late 2025 that allows for vehicles involved in a reckless driving offense to be impounded. A spokesperson for the Milwaukee Police Department said that there were 30 “reckless vehicle tows” between Nov. 5, 2025 and Sunday.

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Meanwhile, some state lawmakers want to place up to 75 red light cameras at intersections across Milwaukee. Another proposal would place devices that limit a driver’s speed in the vehicles of repeat reckless drivers in Wisconsin.

The Forest County Potawatomi Community was also awarded a $3.6 million grant through the Safe Streets and Roads for All program’s 2025 funding cycle. That money will be used to construct a shared use path along a state highway. 



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Minneapolis, MN

ICE officers use tear gas after confrontation in Minneapolis near shooting memorial

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ICE officers use tear gas after confrontation in Minneapolis near shooting memorial


ICE officers deployed tear gas during a confrontation with activists just a couple of blocks from the memorial site for Renee Good in Minneapolis.

Protesters clash with police

What we know:

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Around 12:45 p.m., federal law enforcement officers were involved in a confrontation with protesters in the area of East 35th Street and Park Avenue, just two blocks from the spot where Renee Good was shot at 34th and Portland.

In a post on Bluesky, Minneapolis Council Member Jason Chavez says ICE officers “rammed” into a car and then questioned the immigration status of the driver – who Chavez said was a U.S. citizen. Chavez said the officers also used a chemical irritant that appeared to be tear gas.

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What they’re saying:

At the scene, FOX 9 saw a Subaru with a smashed rear bumper. Speaking after the fact, the man who was questioned said he believes he was stopped purely because he is Latino.

“Because I look Latino, that’s it,” he said. “I don’t look white or got blue eyes. I’m sorry to say that guys. They saw this mustache and they saw me with a hat and they were like ‘Oh, this guy looks like a target. Let’s pull him over.’”

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The man says the officers turned on their lights to stop him. He took a left turn and said before he could pull over to stop, they hit him.

A statement sent to FOX 9, attributed to Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, said the following:

“On January 12, ICE officers were in a vehicle conducting surveillance on a known illegal alien target when agitators began to obstruct law enforcement. An agitator’s reckless driving caused the officer to get in a car wreck. 

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“ICE officers approached the vehicle and asked the driver for identification. The driver quickly became agitated and began threatening ICE officers and shouting profanities at them. Officers were swarmed by approximately 100 agitators who surrounded law enforcement and began throwing objects at them, threatening them, blocking their exit, and impeding their lawful operations. Officers called for backup and were forced to deploy tear gas and other crowd control techniques in order to disperse the crowd.

“Thankfully, all officers were able to safely exit the scene without injuries.

“Make no mistake – obstructing federal law enforcement officers during the performance of their duties is not only dangerous but also a crime.

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“Sanctuary politicians have created an environment that encourages rampant assaults on law enforcement. Our law enforcement officers are facing a 3,200% increase in vehicle attacks, a more than 1,300% increase in assaults, and an 8,000% increase in death threats.”

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The man says he told the officers he was a citizen but refused to show documents. However, he says they checked his plates, and he believes they verified his identity that way.

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As the investigation was underway, a crowd of “observers” gathered and things got tense. Eventually, the law enforcement officers used tear gas to clear the crowd and leave the scene.

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