Former Illinois deputy Sean Grayson, charged with murder after fatally shooting Sonya Massey in her home, claimed he fired his gun out of fear that Massey would throw boiling liquid at him. The Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office report, dated July 9, detailed Grayson’s account of the events leading up to the shooting. Body-camera footage showed Grayson and Massey in her kitchen, with Massey saying “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus” before Grayson fired his gun. He claimed he thought she was going to kill him.
Grayson threatened to shoot Massey as she held a pot of boiling liquid, causing her to apologize and cover her face with the pot. Grayson fired his weapon, causing Massey to fall behind a counter. He indicated that he gave her verbal commands to drop the pot before shooting. Grayson pleaded not guilty and was fired from the sheriff’s office following the incident, prompting calls for Sheriff Jack Campbell to resign.
The report also included accounts from other deputies who responded to the shooting, with Deputy Jason Eccleston describing Grayson as visibly shaken and advising him not to speak about the incident. Massey had been reported to have been in a medical facility out of town before the shooting, and had engaged in erratic behavior including throwing a brick through her car window. Massey’s mother had called 911 the day before the shooting, describing her daughter as having a mental breakdown and asking for non-combative officers to respond.
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