‘An epidemic’: Metro Atlanta residents protest police brutality in wake of Sonya Massey’s death

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – Almost a month after Sonya Massey was shot dead by a deputy in Illinois, a crowd gathered in Atlanta on Sunday to remember her — and their own loved ones whose lives were taken by law enforcement.

At Park Avenue Baptist Church, photo after photo lined the wooden pews during the memorial service, remembering the dead. Amid the grief, families are now banding together to raise awareness of police brutality, they said.

Toni Franklin-Boykins said her son, 12-year-old Le’Den Boykins, was killed in September 2021 after a PIT maneuver by a Georgia State Patrol officer caused the car he was in to flip.

“The police never came to my house, never knocked on our door to let us know our son was killed,” she said. “In [Sonya Massey’s] case, they got justice right away. In most of our cases, mine, we haven’t even begun.”

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Wanda McGilberry was a family friend of Christon Collins, a disabled veteran who had a mental illness. He died in DeKalb County Jail in March, allegedly unresponsive on the floor for hours before any guards came to help, she said.

“We don’t want anything to happen to another inmate, veteran, someone with mental illness,” she said.

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And Jimmy Hill, the father of Jimmy Atchison, said his son was killed in January 2019 by an officer with what he described as “a troubled history of being overly aggressive and disobeying orders.”

“When will people stop remaining silent about this injustice? When will it end? Police brutality is an epidemic,” he added. “It’s just time for people right now to stop remaining silent. Stop ignoring, and stop turning a blind eye towards this injustice.”

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