US News: The United States Police released new body camera footage on Monday in which officers were seen shooting dead an unarmed Black woman in her home after she called for help over a possible intruder. The footage was released by Illinois State Police in which a black woman named Sonya Massey was seen shot dead, news agency AFP reported.
One of the police officers linked with the case has been charged with murder so far. According to the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office, Massey, 36, called 911 to report a possible intruder at her home. The police arrived after midnight on July 6.
In video footage released on Monday, Massey can be seen talking to two officers at her home while they ask for ID and she searches through paperwork, as reported by AFP. The sheriff’s deputies then asked her to check on a pot of boiling water on her stove, saying, “We don’t need a fire while we’re here.”
When one of the deputies stepped back, the victim woman asked why, and he responded with a laugh: “away from your hot steaming water,” as quoted by AFP.
Massey calmly responded to the officers holding the pot. She said, “Oh, I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.” One of the deputies gave a prompt response, saying, “You better fucking not. I swear to God I’ll fucking shoot you at your fucking face,” drawing his weapon.
Massey apologised and crouched behind a counter as officers screamed, “Drop the fucking pot.” The officers then went around the corner of the counter and opened fire.
Afterward, one of the officers said they were afraid of “taking fucking boiling water to the fucking head,” as quoted by AFP. White Officer Sean Grayson has been charged with murder. On Monday, Biden reacted to the incident, calling Massey “a beloved mother, friend, daughter, and young Black woman.”
“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,” the US President said in a statement. High-profile civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who was representing the family of Massey, called it “one of the worst videos of a police shooting ever.”
