A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
The trial of a former Illinois sheriff’s deputy accused of murder continues today. Prosecutors say the ex-officer, who is white, killed an unarmed Black woman in her home after she called 911 for help. Mawa Iqbal from member station WBEZ has this report, which includes the sound of gunfire.
MAWA IQBAL, BYLINE: Former Officer Sean Grayson faces three counts of first-degree murder for killing 36-year-old Sonya Massey. She had called police to report a suspected prowler outside her home in Springfield, Illinois. Her mother had called the day prior, saying that her daughter was experiencing a mental health crisis. During the trial, prosecutors played police body cam video of the encounter Massey had with police. It showed Grayson firing at Massey after telling her to remove a pot of boiling water from her kitchen stovetop.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
SONYA MASSEY: OK, I’m sorry.
SEAN GRAYSON: Drop the [expletive] pot. Drop the [expletive] pot. Drop the…
(SOUNDBITE OF GUNSHOTS)
GRAYSON: Drop the [expletive] pot.
UNIDENTIFIED OFFICER: Live team (ph) shots fired. [inaudibleible].
GRAYSON: Shots fired. Shots fired.
IQBAL: It was an emotional moment in court. Several jurors recoiled in their seats. One couldn’t stop crying and covered her face with her notepad. Another juror, the only Black member, lowered his head and didn’t watch the rest of the video. The prosecutor called the killing unlawful and says Grayson killed Massey because, quote, “he was mad at her.” Grayson, who’s pleaded not guilty, kept his head bowed and fidgeted in his seat. There have been questions about Grayson’s hiring since he had been employed at six police agencies in a period of four years. His defense team said that was common in smaller towns and maintained the former officer acted in self-defense at Massey’s home, a claim that he can be heard making on the body camera footage.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
GRAYSON: You know, what else do we do? I’m not taking hot boiling water to my [expletive] face, and it already reached us.
IQBAL: The footage then goes on to show Massey bleeding out on her kitchen floor while the other officer renders first aid. That’s when Sonya Massey’s mother and a cousin left the courtroom in tears. Grayson could face life in prison if he’s found guilty.
For NPR News, I’m Mawa Iqbal in Peoria, Illinois.
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