On July 6, 2024, Sonya Massey, a 36-year-old unarmed African American woman, was murdered by Sean Grayson, a deputy of the Sangamon County Sheriff's Office in Woodside Township near Springfield, Illinois, United States. Grayson was fired by the sheriff's office and charged with three counts of first-degree murder on July 17, 2024. He pled self-defense at his trial, which began on October 22, 2025. On October 29, the jury found him guilty of second-degree murder.
Massey had called 911 about a possible prowler in her house. Grayson and Sheriff's Deputy Dawson Farley responded and found nothing after searching the vicinity. Moving inside her house, the deputies requested her ID, and Massey began searching for it. The situation escalated quickly when Massey removed a pot of boiling water from her stove after the deputies asked her to check on it. Massey lifted the pot and said twice, "I rebuke you in the name of Jesus." Grayson screamed that he would "fucking shoot [her] right in [her] fucking face", drew his service pistol, and yelled, "Drop the fucking pot". Massey apologized, ducked behind a counter, raised her hands, and briefly rose. Grayson then shot at her three times, with one shot fatally wounding Massey in the head.
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