The Illinois deputy charged with murdering a woman who called 911 shot her in the face after she handled a pot of steaming water, which he viewed as a threat, prosecutors say. Sean Grayson of the Sangamon County Sheriff's Office in Springfield, Illinois, is facing three counts of murder in the shooting death of Sonya Massey, who'd reported a "prowler" at her home in the early hours of July 6. Grayson and another deputy responded, finding evidence that a car had been broken into, court documents state, per the New York Times. They then followed Massey inside her home, where Grayson "noticed a pot on the stove, and approved of Massey removing the pot to prevent any accidental fires," prosecutors wrote, per CNN.
But as Massey handled the pot, Grayson allegedly threatened to shoot her in the face. He drew his gun, pointed it at her, and told her to drop the pot, documents state. Massey dropped the pot, put up her arms, said "I'm sorry," then ducked behind a counter, the Times reports. Grayson then moved closer to Massey, who stood up, grabbed the pot, and ended up tossing out the water on a chair, documents state, per NBC News. At that point, Grayson allegedly fired three times, striking Massey in the face. He then discouraged his partner from retrieving a medical kit, citing the severity of injury, documents state. His colleague rendered aid regardless. Grayson allegedly did not.
It's unclear how investigators amassed some of these details. Grayson only activated his body camera after shooting Massey, per CNN. The other deputy's camera was running the whole time but he was "checking the house while the dispute over the pot happened," according to the outlet. Grayson claimed he feared for his safety. A use-of-force review found he was justified in pointing his weapon at Massey but not in shooting her. "This is similar to an officer stepping in front of a moving vehicle and fearing for his safety," wrote use-of-force incident review chair Master Sergeant Nick Korte, per the Times. In approaching Massey, Grayson "placed himself within a distance where he could have been injured."
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The deputy has been fired. He pleaded not guilty to charges of murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, and official misconduct on Thursday and is held without bond. Body camera footage of the shooting will be released on Monday. (More police shooting stories.)
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