An Illinois deputy is facing murder charges for shooting a woman in the face after responding to her call about a prowler in her home.
Sean Grayson, 30, was indicted Wednesday on charges of first-degree murder, aggravated battery and official misconduct. The charges come nearly two weeks after Grayson shot and killed 36-year-old Sonya Massey in her Springfield home after she had called 911 about an intruder.
Massey was Black and Grayson is white.
It's “extremely hard to imagine how a woman who calls police out of fear of an intruder ends up shot … by the police in her own home,” Ben Crump, a Florida-based civil rights attorney representing Massey’s family told CNN last week.
Neither the Illinois State Police investigation nor a review of Grayson’s body camera footage found that Grayson "was justified in his use of deadly force,” according to a statement from Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Milhiser.
The Sangamon County Sheriff's Office issued an apology to the Massey family over the “tragic incident” on Wednesday, writing in a Facebook post they would “mourn with them and the community.”
“It is clear that the deputy did not act as trained or in accordance with our standards," the post says, adding that Grayson had been fired. “The actions taken by Deputy Grayson do not reflect the values and training of the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office or law enforcement as a whole.”
Here’s what we know.
Grayson was one of two Sangamon County deputies who responded to Massey’s house around 12:50 a.m., according to a news release from the sheriff's office.
Massey appeared calm when the deputies arrived and entered her home to "ensure that the residence was safe," according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY.
Grayson noticed a pot of hot water on the stove, which was Massey removed to prevent any accidental fires. Body-cam footage of the encounter shows that Grayson made a comment about the pot while in the living room, and Massey is seen responding to Grayson, setting the pot on the kitchen counter as Grayson stands in the living room, according to court documents
Grayson drew his gun, threatening to shoot Massey in the face, the documents say.
"Seeing the drawn weapon, Ms. Massey put her hands in the air and stated, 'I'm sorry' while ducking for cover behind the counter that separated them," according to court documents.
Grayson proceeded to close the distance between him and Massey, yelling at her to put the pot down. He fired the gun three times, shooting Massey in the face once, according to court documents.
Grayson did not turn on his body worn camera until after he shot Massey. The other deputy, who had their body camera on the entire time, announced that he was going to get medical kit from his vehicle.
Grayson told him not to because of the severity of the injury, but the other deputy rendered aid until medical help arrived at the home, documents say.
"(Grayson) at no time made an attempt to render aid to Ms. Massey," court documents state.
Due to Grayson's "disregard for human life" and access to firearms, State’s Attorney John Milhiser moved to deny him pre-trial release, which was granted on Thursday. Grayson was placed in the custody of the Sangamon County Sheriff while awaiting trial.
Grayson entered a not guilty plea.
Daniel Fultz, Grayson's attorney, declined to comment on his client's behalf when reached by USA TODAY.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat, issued a statement following the announcement of the charges, thanking prosecutors for “bringing the appropriate charges in this case.”
“Sonya Massey was concerned for her safety and called law enforcement to her home for protection. Like all Illinoisans, she deserved that protection,” he said. “Instead, she was gunned down by an officer of the law.”
Pritzker said his “heart breaks" for Sonya’s children, for her family and friends and for all who knew and loved her.
“And I am enraged that another innocent Black woman had her life taken from her at the hands of a police officer,” he said.
Protesters have been in the streets since last Friday, “looking for answers and demanding justice," according to reporting by the Springfield State Journal-Register, part of the USA TODAY Network.
Death at the hands of law enforcement is one that has played out all too often for Black people nationwide, said Sunshine Clemons, co-founder of Black Lives Matter's Springfield chapter. She referenced back to the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Trayvon Martin at a Friday protest.
"She should still be here," Clemons shared with The Journal-Register. "Sonya Massey is her name, her name deserves to be said."
Crump told CNN on Wednesday that the criminal files charged against Grayson were a “an important milestone in the pursuit of justice for Sonya Massey’s family.”
“Especially her children, who have endured unimaginable pain and suffering since they were notified of this tragedy,” Crump said in a news release obtained by CNN. “We remain committed to uncovering the truth of what happened and identifying the failures that allowed this tragic death to occur.”
Massey’s family met with prosecutors and state police on Wednesday to “get an update on the investigation” and “to allow them to view the body-worn camera footage,” according to Milhiser.
With family approval, police plan to release the body cam footage on Monday, saying that "nothing has been redacted, except for the blurring of certain images, out of respect for Ms. Massey and her family.”
Contributing:Patrick M. Keck andSteven Spearie; Springfield State Journal- Register
