A Peoria County, Illinois, jury delivered what was considered a controversial guilty verdict in the criminal trial of a White former sheriff’s deputy Sean Grayson, charged in the killing of Sonya Massey, a 36-year-old Black woman.
During a recent news conference, after the Oct. 30 verdict, the Massey family expressed their dissatisfaction with Mr. Grayson being found guilty of second-degree murder instead of first-degree murder. They are now advocating for him to receive the harshest possible punishment—a 20-year prison sentence.
“There’s a difference in this county when you have my skin color and Grayson’s skin color. We need serious justice, not a miscarriage of justice that happened here in Peoria,” James Wilburn, Sonya Massey’s father, said.
“We need to pass the George Floyd Policing Act. We need to pass the John Lewis Voting Act. We need to make the Sonya Massey Law across the whole United States. Then no family in our country can go through what our family has gone through.”
Chicago Attorney Hakeem Muhammad explained to The Final Call that the sentencing ruling is still murder, but with second-degree it is not premeditated. “It’s still murder, but it’s considered a lesser murder, second degree. Again, it’s still murder, but you have some mitigating factors that lessen the severity of the murder, which makes it secondary.”
The family was represented by co-counsels Benjamin Crump and Antonio Romanucci. Atty. Romanucci also spoke at the news conference.
“We disagree with this. He had the cover of that counter between him and Sonya. He had the power of a gun. He had the strength of a badge and a shield,” Mr. Romanucci said. “And what did he do with that strength and power?
He told Sonya, who was holding a pot, ‘I am going to shoot you in the face.’ That, ladies and gentlemen, is indicia of intent. And he carried out his intent, and he shot her exactly where he said he was going to.”
In Springfield, Illinois, last year, Sonya Massey, during a mental health crisis, called 911 to report a prowler at her residence. Sean Grayson was one of the two deputies from the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office who responded to her call.
Half an hour later, Deputy Grayson shot Ms. Massey in the face, inside her home and told the other deputy not to attempt any life-saving measures. Ms. Massey was unarmed.
The NAACP Legal Defense Fund released a statement on the verdict from Associate Director-Counsel Todd A. Cox. “While the conviction of former Deputy Sheriff Grayson for second-degree murder is a step towards accountability, it will not bring Sonya Massey back. It also does not lessen the need for the difficult work ahead to prevent more senseless police killings,” Mr. Cox said in part.
Ms. Massey’s death resulted in reforms, including the passage of the “Sonya Massey Law” aimed at improving police hiring practices in Illinois. The new legislation requires law enforcement agencies to conduct more comprehensive reviews of past employment.
The Massey family believes a more thorough review would have prevented Mr. Grayson from being hired by the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office. Her family previously reached a $10 million civil settlement.
“This man was kicked out of the [Army]. He was in six police departments in three-and-a-half years,” Mr. Wilburn said. “That is shameful. Shameful on Sangamon County for even having a person like that, giving him a gun and a badge.”
Following the Grayson guilty verdict, Atty. Crump, who was not at the news conference, released a statement praising the conviction.
“While we believe Grayson’s actions deserved a first-degree conviction, today’s verdict is still a measure of justice for Sonya Massey,” Atty. Crump said. “Accountability has begun, and we now hope the court will impose a meaningful sentence that reflects the severity of these crimes and the life that was lost.”
Teresa Haley, a member of the Springfield NAACP, also spoke at the news conference.
“People need to understand that there’s a major difference between second-degree murder and first-degree murder,” she said. “I’m talking 40, 50 years difference in sentence. Do you know that this man, even though it may be 20 years, he could get out in 10 years? 10 years!”
Kimberle Crenshaw, co-founder and executive director of the African American Policy Forum, released this statement: “Sonya Massey should be alive today. That she called 9-1-1 for help but was killed in her own home instead by the people who were supposed to help her shows how our government has failed Black women time and again. Black women’s lives matter.”
She continued: “Convicting her killer today is a small step toward acknowledging what should be held as a universal truth. But there can never be full justice for her family and community because she is gone. We will not stop fighting for a country where Black women can thrive without fear, in their homes and in their lives. For Sonya and for all of us. #SayHerName.”
Grayson now awaits sentencing.
—Nisa Islam Muhammad, Staff Writer