The more we learn about  Sonya Massey‘s killer, former Illinois deputy Sean Grayson, the more evident it becomes that the 30-year-old should not have had a badge or gun at the time he used the latter to end Massey’s life for no discernable reason. Maybe that’s why Grayson’s former employer is now asking for the “forgiveness” of Massey’s “family and friends.”

According to the Springfield State Journal-Register, Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell said Monday that his department “failed the community,” implying that it is due to that failure that Massey was shot to death by a trigger-happy cop who, by the way, had been employed by six different police agencies since 2020 and was discharged from the U.S. Army for “serious misconduct” in 2016.

“We failed. We did not do our jobs,” Campbell during a Department of Justice Community Relations Service listening session at Union Baptist Church in Springfield. “We failed Sonya. We failed Sonya’s family and friends.

“I stand here before you with my arms wide open and I ask for your forgiveness. I ask (Donna Massey, Sonya’s mother) for forgiveness. I offer up no excuses,” he continued.

Last week, we learned that Grayson spent four years bouncing from one police agency to the next like they were old pairs of shoes. We learned that he has two DUI convictions on his record and that the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office, where Grayson was employed when he shot Massey, knew about the DUIs as did his previous employers, one of whom wrote in a recommendation letter to the Auburn Police Department, that “aside from Mr. Grayson’s DUI, there were no other issues that he had during his tenure in the U.S. Army.”

Apparently, the sheriff’s office found out the hard way that Grayson was a walking red flag of a cop, and a superior officer even questioned why he was still employed as an officer of the law. “How are you still employed by us?!” they asked.

They still didn’t fire him though.

From IPM News:

Personnel records show that Grayson’s time there was fraught, though he was not fired by the department. Grayson’s file from Logan County shows he continued a high-speed pursuit of a traffic offender even after his supervisor ordered him to terminate it, a woman filed a complaint claiming Grayson tried to watch as she was strip searched, and her fiancé, who was in Logan County jail, claimed Grayson questioned him in front of other inmates as retaliation for his girlfriend’s complaint.

Logan County Chief Deputy Nathan Miller wrote in a November 2022 report that Grayson needed “extensive” training after failing to listen to his superiors. He wrote Grayson needed field training, along with “additional traffic stop training, report writing training, high-stress decision making process classes, and needs to read, discuss and understand issued Logan County Sheriff’s Department policies.”

“Seven months on. How are you still employed by us?” Miller asked Grayson during a recorded meeting to discuss Grayson’s actions.

“I don’t know,” Grayson responded.

Grayson continued to serve with Logan County Sheriff’s Department for five more months.

Miller told Grayson at the time that because he was still in his probationary period, which meant he could be fired at will, his numerous violations of the sheriff’s office’s policies could lead to his termination—so why TF wasn’t he fired long before he was in a position to walk into Sonya Massey’s home and ultimately end her life? 

Grayson could have been fired in 2022 after he continued to chase after a truck,  traveling faster than 60 mph in 30 mph zones, even after he was instructed to end his pursuit by his supervisor. Instead of following his superior officer’s instruction, Grayson turned off his emergency lights and siren and continued at speeds more than 100 mph “to keep the truck in sight,” according to his report.

Grayson could have been fired a month after his meeting with Miller after the sheriff’s department received a complaint that Grayson tried to watch as a female detainee was strip-searched. The complaint against Grayson was determined to be “unfounded,” but not so unfounded that his supervisors didn’t still feel compelled to recommend that Grayson receive counseling on best practices. The red flags kept rolling in from there.

More from IPM:

Two weeks later, the woman’s fiancé, who was being held in Logan County Jail, filed a complaint stating Grayson came to the jail and questioned him in retaliation.

“He is angry at her for filing the report and came back here and asked to speak to me in front of all of the other inmates, who now know that I talked to detectives which could possibly put me in danger!” the man wrote.

The police chief in the city of Auburn, his previous employer, relayed to Logan County that Grayson was very aggressive about making drug arrests and expressed concern that he was too aggressive. The chief further said Grayson was a “bragger” who once posted on social media about a drug arrest.

The Auburn chief also noted that Grayson struggled with report writing and was “not great” with evidence – though the chief relayed that Grayson received no write-ups or punishment during his time at Auburn.

So, maybe Sheriff Campbell’s apology to Massey’s family is about more than how one department “failed the community.” Maybe his plea for “forgiveness” is an indication that the entire system of policing in America also owes an apology to communities across the country, because it is simply way too easy for bad cops to remain employed.

Sean Grayson should have been looking for a new line of work, and Sonya Massey should still be alive today. These two truths are directly connected, and that’s the real problem.

Just a few weeks after revealing their relationship was over, Joie Chavis and Trevon Diggs shared a kiss at their baby shower.

Over the weekend, the pair reunited to celebrate the impending arrival of their little bundle of joy. Though Chavis revealed just a few weeks ago that the two of them called it quits, they looked like quite the couple as they kissed in front of their friends during the festivities.

Footage taken by a guest at the baby shower shows Joie opening up a gift from Diggs, holding it up, and showing attendees while flashing a big smile. She then turns around and purses her lips toward Trevon, who quickly plants a kiss on Joie.

While the peck was nothing to write home about, the kiss seems to signal that the pair are giving their relationship another shot—or that they’re at least on good enough terms to share a quick smooch in front of friends.

News of their breakup was revealed in a comment screenshot by The Shade Room just two weeks ago. The confirmation came when Chavis replied to a fan who asked whether she and the NFL star were still in a relationship.

“No we aren’t,” Joie wrote at the time. “I think thats obvious.”

Now, however, the status of their relationship isn’t so obvious!

This will be the pair’s first child, but Chavis and Diggs already have children from previous relationships. The dancer shares daughter Shai, 13, with Bow Wow and son Hendrix, 5, with Future. The Dallas Cowboys player is a father to Aaiden, 7, and Chosen, 3.

No husband wants to call this type of meeting…

Have you been watching MTV’s Love & Hip Hop Atlanta since it returned? Last week, Kirk and Rasheeda were opened up about concerns they had involving his son Kannon’s mom Jasmine. WELP! We’ve got an exclusive sneak preview clip from this week’s episode where they come face to face with Jasmine and try to resolve their problems. Check out the clip below:

First of all, good on them saying ‘it’s nice to see you’ because how many folks are really saying that — much less meaning it — when it comes to this kind of situation.

Secondly, do you think Kirk and Jasmine need mediation again – or does it seem to you that it didn’t really serve them well the first time?

Here’s what else to expect from the episode:

Jasmine’s meeting with Kirk & Rasheeda leaves her with frostbite. Momma Dee’s new endeavor gives Scrappy some food for thought. Finally out of the hospital and back on her feet, Sierra finds it’s her friendships that are in critical condition.

The brand new episode of Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta is set to air on Tuesday, July 30 at 8PM ET/PT on MTV.

Will you be watching?

PnB Rock’s alleged shooter is avoiding facing justice a little longer after reportedly being found “not yet competent” to stand trial.

In September of 2022 rapper PnB Rock was tragically shot and killed while dining at Roscoe’s in Los Angeles. His death would mark the second rapper from the East Coast murdered while visiting Los Angeles since 2020. Following his fatal shooting, authorities apprehended who they believed to be responsible for the crime.

Now according to Rolling Stone, the now 17-year-old alleged shooter appeared in a Los Angeles County courtroom this weekend but a judge ruled that he was not yet competent enough to stand trial for his alleged actions. Reportedly the minor lacks the “necessary competency” to be involved in any legal proceedings.

Rolling Stone adds that the alleged shooter is receiving services while behind bars to be able to stand trial but still has a long path ahead.

“The recommendation is that the previous orders remain,” Commissioner Sharonda P. Bradford said. “The proceedings remain suspended, remediation continues.”

All parties will return to court next month for a follow-up hearing to decide the path forward. The minor’s father Freddie Trone is also on trial for the same murder and has pleaded not guilty to all charges involving the robbery and murder.

Co-defendant, Tremont Jones, who’s accused of tipping off PNB Rock’s location to his alleged murderers pleaded not guilty as well.