SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — An autopsy confirmed that Sonya Massey died from a gunshot wound to the head, fired by now-former Deputy Sean Grayson.
The Sangamon County Coroner's Office released the autopsy Friday morning through an email to 5 On Your Side.
Hours after the results of the autopsy were released, 5 On Your Side sat down with the family of Sonya Massey days after police released body camera video showing a deputy shooting and killing her in Springfield earlier this month.
The autopsy describes that the bullet fired by Grayson entered Massey's lower eyelid, hit her carotid artery and exited the back-left surface of the upper neck. The bullet does not appear to have hit any part of Massey's brain, as the coroner notes that Massey's cerebral hemispheres, brainstem, and cerebellum were "unremarkable" and that her cerebral ventricles contained no blood.
It was a difficult day for the family of Sonya Massey, finding out new graphic details about how she was killed inside her Springfield home.
"I don't think we'll ever make sense of this," said Raymond Massey, the uncle of Sonya Massey.
Sonya's cousin, Shadia Massey, said the results were difficult to receive: "It hits us very hard. The way that Sonya was shot and taken from us. It was disgusting, and it hurts us very badly."
Sonya Massey's family said it was not uncommon for her to tell people she loved them.
Her cousin, Shadia Massey, said, "Sonya's last words to the person that killed her was, 'I love you.'"
"She made it a point to call me, you know, and keep in touch. And every time she calls the first thing she says is 'I love you, uncle.' She only called me to tell me about either her kids or her accomplishments, and she was so proud of herself, with the accomplishments that she's had," her uncle Raymond said.
Massey's family held a press conference at 10:30 a.m. Friday to go over the findings of the autopsy. See the full press conference here:
Nationally renowned civil rights and personal injury attorney Ben Crump, who is representing Massey's family in the case, said at a press conference on Friday that the bullet's downward trajectory confirms that Grayson shot Massey while she was on the ground.
"Her telling him she was sorry and, and ducking, and she was just trying to get out the way. I heard the first two shots in the video and that those shots didn't hit her. It's like he reached around to purposely hit her and that's, that's the hurtful part. There was no humanity. I mean, there were terrible things that were said even after the fact, as she was lying there on the floor," Raymond and Shadia said.
"The autopsy confirms what everyone already knew from the video: that this just a senseless, unnecessary, excessive use of force," Crump said. "Certainly not justified."
Shadia and Raymond Massey said their family has not been contacted by the Sangamon County Sheriff's Office since she was killed.
"The video was horrible enough, but to be misled on how things transpired is even more hurtful and it just makes that pain a lot deeper for our family," said Raymond.
Shadia says Sonya was like a sister to her, growing up in the same home. She describes the tragic scene at Sonya's home, having to clean up the blood of her best friend.
"Walking into that house, I just felt her. I felt her, and I felt like I knew what happened to her immediately. When I got to the kitchen, and I see her blood lying on the floor, it broke me down. But my main focus was to not let my niece and nephew see what happened to their mother on that floor," Shadia said.
The Massey family said they won't stop until she gets the justice she deserves.
"I just feel like he should never have been hired as a sheriff and that is the most that is standing out for me. I think we're going to get full justice, and I pray that we do," Shadia said.
Raymond said there were a lot of red flags and agreed with Shadia that Grayson should've never been hired.
He said, "I would just think that they need to do a better background check on everybody. And I feel that the department needs to have different policies and protocols. I mean, else he would not have been hired. He needs to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."
Massey's family had been waiting for the autopsy results to determine if Massey would have survived if medical aid had been administered to her faster. Grayson discouraged another deputy at the scene after the shooting from getting his medical kit and administering first aid to Massey because he had shot her in the head, saying, "There's nothing we can do."
Two minutes after the shooting, Grayson left the home to get his medical kit, and the other deputy administered aid until paramedics got to the scene.
At the press conference, Crump and Sonya's 17-year-old son, Malachi, mentioned that Sonya had voluntarily gone to a mental health facility for 30 days in St. Louis, but was released after two days there, which was just days before the shooting. Malachi didn't remember the name of the facility but said that's why he and his 15-year-old sister, Summer, were with their father during the time of the shooting.
On Sunday, July 28, there will be rallies to mourn Sonya Massey in cities across the country, including here in St. Louis.
The rallies will be held in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and St. Louis. The details of the time and location for the St. Louis rally have not been released yet.
The DOJ is now investigating. The former Sangamon County Sheriff's deputy has been charged with first-degree murder in the shooting, among other charges. The investigation is ongoing.
See the full autopsy here:
This is a developing story. This article will be updated when more information is released.