The Juxtaposition of Sonya Massey's Killing and Kamala Harris' Presidential Run

Notes from America with Kai Wright

Kamala Harris’s nomination for president is historic and unprecedented. But one thing that has followed Harris since her initial campaign for president in 2019 are the many questions around her record as a prosecutor, district attorney and eventually the Attorney General of California. These questions have come to a head through the lens of the brutal, high profile killing of Sonya Massey at the hands of an officer on July 6 just outside Springfield, Illinois.

Massey thought someone was breaking into her home and called the cops. She was actually in the midst of a mental health crisis, and when two officers showed up, the situation got much worse despite the officers acknowledging that they knew Massey may be in mental distress. Body camera footage ultimately revealed a horrific scene in which Deputy Sheriff Sean Grayson shoots Massey in the face, then refuses to provide aid as she dies. Grayson has been indicted on murder charges and denied pretrial release.

Massey’s story broke into national news just days before Kamala Harris became the Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee for president. So what, if anything, in her extensive career can provide insight on what a potential Harris administration could or even would do to end this cycle of police killings?

In this episode, host Kai Wright discusses the juxtaposition of Sonya Massey’s life and death and candidate Harris’s record on police violence specifically and law enforcement generally with

Christina Carrega,criminal justice reporter at Capital B, and Jamilah King, editorial director at Mother Jones.

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