Sonya Massey, 36, was killed early on the morning of 6 July by Sean Grayson, an Illinois sheriff’s deputy, in her home in Springfield, the Illinois state capitol.
Massey, whom her daughter confirmed was paranoid-schizophrenic, had called police because she thought someone was trying to break into her home.
When police arrived, they began looking into Massey’s home with flashlights, a neighbor, Cheryl Evans, told the Guardian.
Evans wondered why police had not knocked on her door, as they typically have done in the past when searching for suspects.
Eventually, Grayson, who is white, and his partner entered the home where they began speaking to Massey.
After an initial discussion and request for Massey’s driver’s license, Grayson spotted a pot of boiling water on the stove and ordered Massey to remove it to avoid starting a fire. In doing so, Massey asks the officers – who visibly distance themselves from her as she goes to handle the pot – why they moved away from her.
“Where you going?” she asks them.
