By JOHN O’CONNOR, Associated Press

PEORIA, Ill. (AP) — An Illinois jury is set to continue deliberations Wednesday in the first-degree murder trial of a sheriff’s deputy who shot Sonya Massey , a Black woman who had called 911 for help and was later killed in her home because of the way she was handling a pan of hot water.

The nine-woman, three-man jury received the case Tuesday and deliberated for about 6 1/2 hours. Jurors must decide whether Sean Grayson , 31, is guilty of murder for fatally shooting Massey in Springfield.

Grayson and another deputy answered Massey’s emergency call reporting a prowler outside the 36-year-old woman’s home early on the morning of July 6, 2024. They entered the house and, spotting a pan of hot water on the stove, Grayson ordered it removed, accor

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