Sonya Massey’s teenage son described his mother as “loving,” “very smart” and someone who “always helped everyone but herself” in a heartbreaking new interview.
Massey, 36, a mother of two from Springfield, Illinois, was shot and killed in her kitchen by a white sheriff’s deputy, Sean Grayson, 36, after she called police to investigate a prowler in the area outside her home on July 6.
His family is now trying to draw attention to the shooting after body camera footage showed the shocking circumstances of his death. The leaked audio also hears an officer telling a dispatcher that Massey’s wounds were “self-inflicted.”
The Massey family is being represented by civil rights attorney Ben Crump. They say there was a cover-up, with officers telling hospital staff that Massey had shot herself and, later, that an intruder had shot her.
Speaking to CBS News, Malachi Hill-Massey, 17, spoke fondly of his mother.
Malaci Hill-Massey, 17, and Sonya Massey’s mother, Donna, sat down for an interview with CBS News in which they described the trauma they experienced in the wake of the shooting.
“A good mother. She was very smart and always helped everyone except herself. To me, she was a true sweetheart,” Malachi fondly said of his mother, pictured above.
“She was a good mother. She was very smart and always helped everyone except herself. She was a real sweetheart to me, honestly. She cooked me the best food. I love her food, honestly,” he said.
“She’s the most loving person ever. I don’t know. She’s the person who made me feel so loved.”
At a family news conference Tuesday airing their grievances over the shooting, Malachi told reporters gathered there that he could not bring himself to watch the horrific body camera video.
“I have no words for this,” he told the crowd.
In it CBS In the interview, Massey’s mother, Donna, reiterated the need for an investigation into the cover-up, stressing that the official story has changed.
“They said she was under investigation, then they said they told the doctors at the hospital that she had committed suicide, and then they changed it,” he said.
‘They continued to change history.’
At Massey’s funeral on July 19, his father, James Wilburn, told mourners that the family only learned it was an officer-involved shooting through the media.
At a news conference, Malachi told the audience he couldn’t bring himself to watch the body camera footage showing his mother’s death.
Donna told CBS that the first story she was told at the hospital was that someone had shot her daughter, without saying who.
“I’m sure justice will be done. I know that. We are sure of it,” he added.
What led to Sonya Massey’s murder?
Sean Grayson and another Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy were called to Sonya Massey’s home after she dialed 911 fearing a prowler at 12:50 a.m. on July 6.
The two officers searched the outside of the house for 30 minutes and discovered only a car with its windows smashed.
During his interactions with officers, Massey made several mentions of Jesus Christ and the Bible.
Massey had placed a pot of possibly hot water on the counter following Grayson’s instructions.
The victim made a comment about ‘scolding’ Grayson in the name of Jesus Christ.
Grayson was in the living room when he pulled out his firearm and threatened to shoot Massey in the face, prompting her to put her hands up and say, “I’m sorry.”
Massey hides behind a counter that separates the two.
Grayson approached, yelled at Massey to put the pot down and opened fire, hitting her three times, once in the head.
Grayson did not render aid and discouraged the other officer from rendering aid.
The second officer, whose name was not released, stayed with Massey until medics arrived. She was pronounced dead at St. John’s Hospital.
Donna has already met with Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, and a meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris is also scheduled. President Joe Biden issued a statement saying he was “heartbroken” by the shooting.
At a news conference Tuesday in Springfield, Ben Crump said the Justice Department had opened an investigation into the incident, “which is welcome, because there have been some concerns and disclosures by the family that we think need to be investigated.”
He said he did not know the scope of the investigation.
But in a statement, the Justice Department said it is “aware of and evaluating the circumstances surrounding the officer’s tragic death” and said it will “continue to follow up on the criminal case.”
Massey’s father, James Wilburn, called for Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell to resign.
“I want to tell everyone that the sheriff that’s here is a disgrace,” Wilburn said. “This man (Grayson) should never have had a badge. And he should never have had a gun. He should never have been given the opportunity to kill my son.”
The Illinois Law Enforcement Standards and Training Board shows Grayson was hired part-time on August 11, 2020, by the Pawnee Police Department.
He was also hired part-time on February 4, 2021 by the Kincaid Police Department and on May 20, 2021 by the Virden Police Department.
Two months later, he was hired full-time by the Auburn Police Department and remained there until May 1, 2022, when he was hired full-time by the Logan County Sheriff’s Office.
Grayson left Logan County on April 28, 2023, and was hired full-time on May 1, 2023, by the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office.
He received his Part-Time Law Enforcement Certification on June 5, 2021, according to the Illinois Law Enforcement Standards and Training Board. His certification status is currently listed as suspended on the board’s website.