Stephen A's Take: Boiling Water led to the Police shooting death of Sonya Massey.

Published Jul 26, 2024, 10:00 AM

Stephen A. Smith is a New York Times Bestselling Author, Executive Producer, host of ESPN's First Take, and co-host of NBA Countdown.

Stephen A. discusses the fatal shooting of Sonya Massey, a Black woman, by an Illinois Sheriff’s Deputy.

Footage was released of an officer involved incident that resulted in the death of a Springfield, Illinois woman, and it once again as many in our nation, absolutely positively infuriated. If you have not seen it, trust me when I tell you it is graphic and incredibly disturbing. Sonia Massy, aged thirty six, called police to report a possible intruder at her home in Springfield on July sixth. One of the responding officers, Sangamin County Sheriff's Deputy Sean Grayson, was thirty years of age, allegedly shot Massy three times after the two got into an argument about a pot of hot water in the residence. On the police bodycam footage, Deputy Grayson and another deputy speak calmly with Massey in her home.

And she looks for her ID.

At the request of the officers, she goes to turn off the stove, which was boiling a pot of hot water. She then picks up the pot, and the other deputy steps back and says, away from your hot, steaming water.

When she asks, where's he going?

Quote, I rebuke you in the name of Jesus, she says, in response his quote, you're better fucking not or I swear to God, I'll fucking shoot you in the fucking face.

End quote. Grayson says.

He then draws his firearm and points it at her, and she ducks and says I'm sorry while lifting the pot.

This is what the video shows. Drop the fucking pot. Both the deputies yell three shots are her.

After a few seconds of silence, one deputy says shots fired and calls for emergency medical services. Quote dude, I'm not taking fucking boiling water to the fucking head and look it came right.

To our feet too, Grayson said.

Minutes after the shooting, Grayson speaks to another law enforcement figure. Quote she had boiling water and came at me with boiling water, he says. In the video, she said she was going to rebuke me in the name of Jesus and came at me.

With boiling water. End quote.

Grayson has been fired and is charged with three crime three counts of first degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, and official misconduct.

He pleaded not guilty to the chargers.

The Sheriff's office said, quote, it's clear that the deputy did not act as trained or in accordance with our standards end quote. After an investigation, Deputy Grayson, just to put this out there, worked at six different agencies in four years after being charged twice with DUI and pleading guilty and paid a fine both times.

In twenty fifteen in twenty.

Sixteen, Grayson has worked at six law enforcement agencies in Illinois since twenty twenty, according to the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board it Matcy's father, James Willburn, told reporters quote, I want justice for my baby. You killed the wrong black woman this time.

End quote.

I don't know of a right black woman to kill, so I wouldn't sit up there and say that, but I will say that I'm very, very happy that he's been the Officer Grayson has been charged with first degree murder because it was murder now without the benefit of video evidence, and I certainly don't mean benefit literally.

In light of what we're discussing, I understand.

How some people can sit up there and challenge it, even Officer Grayson himself.

There's no challengingness. That was murder. That was murder.

She's feet away from him in the kitchen area.

Yes, she had the boiling hot water. She was not near him.

On top of it all, his life wasn't in danger, and he said, right there, I'm not taking boiling water or whatever. Okay, So you were worried about boiling water even though she was.

At a distance. You also had assistance.

There because there was another deputy police officer with you, and you still shot this woman and shot her three times.

Because you were worried about hot water.

Where you were standing feet aware, you weren't in throwing distance, you weren't an armed This is nothing like that.

And you're gonna sit up there and articulate that the water was near your feet. It's a disgrace. It's murder. It's murder.

Once again, we found ourselves with this very disturbing subject to tackle. Breonna Taylor, Okay, you gotta tak Filando Castile, Freddie Gray. I can go on with a host a bunch of other news. How about Tyree Nichols in Memphis? I can go with a bunch of stuff right there. But you know something, Here's what it comes down to, and it's according to the Washington Post article on fatal force, although half of the folk shot and killed by police are white, black Americans are shot at a disproportionate rate.

No surprise there.

We account for roughly fourteen percent of the US population, yet we're killed by police at more than twice the rate of white Americans.

Hispanic Americans are.

Also killed by police at a disproportionate rate. Also, according to the Washington Post database of deadly police shootings, black women are far more likely to be killed by police than other women. So it's not a gender thing, it's a black thing. In this day and age, with.

The kind of behavior that we've seen.

Where we're literally literally still lamenting an assassination attempt on a former president of the United States by a twenty year old white kid. Somehow, some way, anytime it comes to black folks, for some reason, the inexplicable happens. The inexplicable happens. This cop should be thrown under the damn jail. First degree murder is more than appropriate. Put his ass in jail, and let the fellas deal with them in whatever way they see fit. This is a disgrace, and a thirty six year old woman is dead. She called them fearing an intruder was in a house, and somehow she ends up.

Dead.

I'm not sitting here castigating everybody. I don't think all white people are certain wayes like I don't think all black people are certain wages. I don't think all Latinos are a certain way.

I'm not of that ilk.

But the world that we're living, that we're living in, the level of frustration that still foments and swells within our souls is because of situations like this. This cop is a murderer. Yes he was fired. Appreciate that. Yes he was charged of first degree murder. I appreciate that. I don't know how he had the gall to say to plead not guilty. I don't know how he pulled that off, or what is he thinking in terms of claiming he's not guilty. His ass needs to be under the jail, and you want to do what you can to stare our society in the right direction. Stand up universally, no matter your ethnicity, and condemn this man universally.

He's a murderer.

Officer Grayson, former officer Grayson, thirty years of age, should spend the rest of his life in jail, and in some people's eyes, that might be too good for him.

And I'm not sure they're lying