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WHMI 93.5 FM Radio Station – Livingston County, Michigan news, weather, traffic, sports, school news and the best classic hits

WHMI 93.5 FM Radio Station – Livingston County, Michigan news, weather, traffic, sports, school news and the best classic hits

Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office

(SPRINGFIELD, Ill.) — Newly released police body camera footage shows Sonya Massey interacting with police officers 16 hours before she was fatally shot in her Illinois home on July 6 when officers responded to her report of a suspicious intruder.

The roughly 45-minute video, obtained by ABC affiliate WICS, shows a distraught Massey leaving her home on July 5, the day before Sean Grayson, a former Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy, shot her.

“I don’t know where they are,” Massey said in the video, referring to her children.

“They’re at their father’s house,” the officer told Massey. “They’re worried about you, too. They all want you to be OK. That’s all.”

The encounter came about after Massey’s mother, Donna, called 911 to report her daughter was having a mental health episode. In the video, Sonya Massey appears concerned about the media being turned off in her home.

“When I got home, I had no hot water, no light,” Sonya Massey said in the video. “I had to throw out all my food.”

At one point in the recording, Sonya Massey tells officers she was taking medication.

“When was the last time you took your medicine?” one respondent asked.

“Last night,” Sonya Massey replied.

When Donna Massey called 911 on July 5, she begged officers not to hurt her daughter.

“She has mental problems, a nervous breakdown,” Donna Massey said in a 911 call obtained by ABC News. “She thinks everybody is after her.”

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump was hired by Sonya Massey’s family shortly after her death.

“Sonya Massey’s family is devastated by this new footage that clearly shows she was in the midst of a mental health crisis,” Crump said in a statement to ABC News on Thursday. “Deputy Sean Grayson’s decision to use deadly force against a woman in distress remains inexcusable, unacceptable and criminal. Grayson must continue to be held accountable for his actions that killed Sonya, who was in desperate need of help.”

Hours later, on July 6 at 12:49 a.m., Sonya Massey personally called 911 to report a disturbance.

“It sounds like someone is banging on the wall of my house. I don’t know,” Sonya Massey said as she called 911. “Can you guys come and take a look?”

Grayson, 30, and a second, unnamed Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy responded to an emergency call at her Springfield home.

Body camera footage shows an unarmed Massey saying, “Please don’t hurt me” to two officers who arrived at the scene as they knocked on her door.

“I don’t want to hurt you, you’re the one who called us,” Grayson said.

In a later video, Grayson, while at Massey’s home looking for her ID, can be seen pointing to a pot of boiling water on the stove.

“We don’t need to light a fire while we’re here,” he said.

Massey then poured the water down the sink.

“I gather you in the name of Jesus,” she said.

Grayson then yelled at Massey and threatened to shoot her, the video shows, and Massey apologized and hid behind the counter, covering her face with what appears to be a red oven mitt. She briefly got up, at which point Grayson shot her three times in the face, the video shows. The former deputy did not render aid.

Grayson admitted he feared for his life during the encounter with Massey, according to documents released last month by the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office.

“While on scene, I feared that Dep. (redacted) and I would be seriously injured or killed. Because of my fear for our safety and lives, I discharged my service weapon,” Grayson wrote in his field investigation report.

Grayson is charged with first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and abuse of authority. He is being held without bail and has pleaded not guilty.

According to police records, Grayson worked for six police departments over four years, was charged with two DUIs and was discharged from the military for gross misconduct. Grayson’s next court appearance is Oct. 21.

“The biggest question is, How did this man get a job in law enforcement in the first place?” James Wilburn, Sonya Massey’s father, told ABC News in an interview in July. “But here’s a man who worked in six different departments in four years.”

Sabina Ghebremedhin and Kimberly Randolph of ABC News contributed to this report.

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