Former Illinois sheriff’s deputy Sean Grayson has been found guilty of the 2024 murder of Sonya Massey, a Black woman who had called 911 about a possible prowler at her home.
Following the closing arguments on Tuesday, October 28, jurors deliberated for almost 12 hours before the verdict was revealed on Wednesday, October 29, according to NBC News.
Grayson was charged with first-degree murder, per the outlet. However, the jury instructions included the option to have him convicted of the lesser charge of second-degree murder.
Attorneys Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci, who represented Massey’s family in a $10 million civil settlement regarding the case, argued that Grayson deserves a first-degree murder conviction. However, they said the verdict was “still a measure of justice for Sonya Massey.”
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“I’m fueled by rage right now,” Massey’s cousin, Sontae Massey, said of the ruling outside of the courthouse, per NBC News. “If you get an officer who says he’s going to shoot you in the face, and then he shoots you in the face, and you only get second-degree murder?”
Meanwhile, former federal prosecutor Mark Chutkow told NBC News that the defense made a “strategic decision” to include the second-degree murder charge.
“The prosecution likely felt confident about their case and was willing to go for an all-or-nothing verdict. But the defense did not want to take that chance, so they advocated for a lesser included charge,” he said.
Grayson is now facing four to 20 years in prison. He will most likely be eligible to get day-for-day credit for good behavior in prison, which means he could end up only serving half of his sentence.
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The former officer was charged in July 2024 in the fatal shooting of Massey, which took place when he reported to her home after she called about a suspected prowler.
As the officers approached Massey, she walked towards a pot of water on the stove and said, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.” The officers pulled out their weapons and instructed her to drop the pot, which led to Grayson to fire his gun three times and fatally hitting Massey with a bullet.
While testifying on Monday, October 27, Grayson said he shot Massey because he believed she was going to throw the pot of water at him. “It raises a lot of concern for me, and I believe she’s going to throw the water,” he said, per CBS News. “We were trained to use force that’s going to gain compliance.”
Following his arrest, many concerns were raised about Grayson’s past work history. Among the concerns, it was revealed that he was ejected from the Army in his 20s when he was arrested for drunken-driving in which he had a weapon in his vehicle. He was later convicted of a second DUI within a year of the first arrest.
