DOJ opens civil rights investigation of Illinois sheriff’s office after shooting of Sonya Massey

The US Justice Department has launched a civil rights investigation of Illinois’ Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office four months after a deputy fatally shot Sonya Massey while responding to her call about a possible prowler outside the 36-year-old Black woman’s home.

The US Justice Department has launched a civil rights investigation of Illinois’ Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office four months after a deputy fatally shot Sonya Massey while responding to her call about a possible prowler outside the 36-year-old Black woman’s home. The July 6 encounter between Massey and two county sheriff’s deputies who came to her home near Springfield ended with deputy Sean Grayson, who is White, shooting her following a dispute involving a pot of hot water in her kitchen, body camera footage shows. Grayson was fired and charged with murder and other offenses. In a letter Thursday to county officials, the Justice Department said the shooting “raises serious concerns about SCSO’s interactions with Black people and people with behavioral health disabilities.” A copy of the letter was obtained by CNN affiliate WICS. The shooting also raises concerns about the SCSO’s “policies, practices, procedures, and training regarding community policing, bias-free policing, response to behavioral health crises, use of force, de-escalation” and other matters, the DOJ said. “Additionally, the incident and prior 911 calls involving Ms. Massey in the days before her death indicate possible issues” with the emergency response and dispatch system, according to the DOJ, which said it’s also reviewing employment practices, allegations of “a lack of racial diversity,” and body-worn camera compliance. The Justice Department will investigate whether these matters amount to race and disability discrimination prohibited by federal law, according to the letter.