Massey Commission

06/24/2026

See the agenda for today's County Mental Health Board meeting at 3:00p.

County Board Committee Room 223
200 S. 9th, 2nd Floor
Springfield

06/24/2026

06/24/2026

Peter Cadigan, the former EMS worker, was sentenced Tuesday evening for the death of Earl Moore Jr. The proceedings lasted over five hours, with character witnesses and impact statements being read in court. Cadigan pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter.

Cadigan was given two years of probation and one hundred hours of community service. He was also sentenced to 180 days in prison, but it was wiped out due to the 295 days he spent in prison pretrial.

https://www.newschannel20.com/news/local/former-ems-worker-sentenced-to-probation-for-involuntary-manslaughter/article_64f0ea68-f14c-4b38-8b4b-8b03cc5e995d.html?fbclid=IwdGRjcASoCnljbGNrBKgKXGV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHgx7hEa4Vo8NeDa860Q6hAV4a54y3LI_HC3f_bD1SmzzUUCfONhGGqS46k9N_aem_4wwNBJKkhT0ynPBokGtUKA

06/18/2026

What we meant when we wrote the Calls to Action

In the months since the Commission released its final report, I have watched people debate individual recommendations. Some support them. Some oppose them. Some want them implemented immediately. Others have questions about cost, authority or feasibility. Those conversations are part of public life. But they also risk beginning the story with “secondly.”

Before there were Calls to Action, there were people. Before there were recommendations, there were witnesses. Yet even that tells the story too late.

The commission’s workgroups on mental health, public safety, economic disparities and community education were not created in a vacuum. They existed because community members pointed us in those directions. Again and again, people identified concerns that had been overlooked, minimized or treated as isolated incidents. In many ways, they were telling us, “Look here. You never look here.”

The Calls to Action emerged from that invitation. We called them Calls to Action for a reason. A call assumes someone has something important to say. An action is what happens when we take that message seriously and keep our eyes on what people were asking us to see.

https://www.illinoistimes.com/arts-culture/advicegoddess/what-we-meant-when-we-wrote-the-calls-to-action/

06/15/2026

The Massey Commission included ending qualified immunity among its official Calls to Action for community reform. This landmark endorsement highlights growing recognition that real accountability is essential to rebuilding public trust in Illinois. But...what IS "qualified immunity"???

Qualified immunity is a doctrine invented by courts that often prevents people from holding government officials accountable for violating constitutional rights unless they can point to a prior case with nearly identical facts. That “gotcha” requirement shuts the courthouse doors to many victims—even when the right is clear.

How does ending it help Illinois?

Ending qualified immunity ensures Illinoisans can present their civil rights claims in court. It promotes consistent standards, deters misconduct, and strengthens trust between communities and public institutions.

For their 10th Anniversary, Black Lives Matter SPI is hosting a Free Brake Light Block Party where you can have the brake lights on your car checked and replaced if needed FOR FREE while also learning more about qualified immunity, the harm it causes and what we can do about it.

Registration REQUIRED (registration helps keep track of the make/model so correct lights are on hand): https://bit.ly/BrakeLightBlockParty

Make sure you mark your calendars for this one!! This event will have:

🚗 FREE brake light repairs,
🍔 FREE food,
🩺 FREE health screening,
🏸 FREE fun for kids
AND SO MUCH MORE!!!

Register today!!!

06/06/2026

The work continues!!

Our 10th anniversary is approaching on July 9th! To celebrate our anniversary AND further the work of the Massey Commission, we are partnering with the Illinois Accountability Coalition to host a community mutual aid block party and you're invited! Save the date and be ready to join us at the Boys & Girls Club on JULY 11TH for

🚨FREE BRAKE LIGHT REPAIRS,
🌭 Free Food,
🩺Free Health Screenings,
⛹🏿‍♀️ Family Friendly Activities and
🗣️ Conversations about how we can hold public officials accountable to enforce our civil rights and end qualified immunity in Illinois!

You do NOT want to miss this event!!

Share with friends and family and stay tuned. More details to come!!!

10yr Anniversary Brake Light Block Party Celebration

06/05/2026

It's been several months since the Massey Commission completed its work, and I know many people in the community have been wondering what comes next.

That's a fair question.

The Commission may have sunsetted. The responsibility did not.

While much of the work happening now is less visible, I want the community to know that many of us who were involved in and around the Commission have not walked away. Conversations continue. Relationships continue. Organizing continues.

Some of us have spent the last several months focused on a question that has always mattered to me: What happens after the report is written?

Communities are often very good at identifying problems. We are less practiced at building the structures necessary to sustain solutions over time. Reports do not implement themselves. Recommendations do not move forward on their own. Momentum must be intentionally cultivated.

Behind the scenes, people are continuing to deepen their understanding of the landscape through anti-racism education, relationship-building, and long-term planning. Work is underway to create durable infrastructure that can help carry this work forward beyond any single commission, meeting, or moment.

There is still much to build and there is also reason for hope.

In the coming months, you'll hear more about efforts to establish a community-based entity focused on implementation, accountability, education, and connection. I know that all this uncertainty can create anxiety. I know many people are waiting for signs that the energy, testimony, and courage shared during the Commission process mattered.

It did.

The work continues. The relationships remain. And many of us are still committed to helping Sangamon County become a place where safety, dignity, belonging, and accountability are not aspirations, but lived realities.

Kelly, Sontae L. Massey, & Adam White

06/02/2026

We will continue to SAY HER NAME: SONYA MASSEY!!

05/31/2026

Don't forget to wear your purple and bring your yard signs to the Black Lives Matter SPI Car Procession today! Show up for Sonya Massey, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and the many others who have lost their lives due to police violence! 💜💜💜💜

1:00- Car Decoration & line up (BLM-SPI will have window markers on site)
1:30- Program starts

https://facebook.com/events/s/black-lives-matter-solidarity-/910852295303717/

05/30/2026

New Mental Health Committee anticipates focusing on adolescent care

Chair: Adolescents of all races have some of the same mental health problems.

“The only difference between the problems of adolescent males in the black community, and adolescent males in the rural communities is pigmentation,” said Nardulli. “They all have the same alienation problems. They all have the same substance abuse problems. We certainly need to address mental health needs in the black community, but I also think we need to focus on rural communities.” 🤔🤔🤔

https://capitolcitynow.com/news/248842-new-mental-health-committee-anticipates-focusing-on-adolescent-care/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=jetpack_social&fbclid=IwdGRjcASHvY1leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAwzNTA2ODU1MzE3MjgAAR4NwtKw3FTmlo60Xg-xW92J9klwrhMaiHFEfvU2OOUM9TvXwjEc0coACEPb1g_aem_xLTqDbDzBE-6GW1psn8oaw