Sheriff’s Deputy Charged With Murder After Fatally Shooting 36-Year-Old Sonya Massey

On Wednesday, a grand jury in Sangamon County, Illinois, indicted a sheriff’s deputy with the shooting and killing of a 36-year-old woman. She had contacted authorities due to worries of a prowler.

Sheriff Deputy Sean Grayson, the sheriff’s deputy, has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, and official misconduct. This is in regards to the killing of Sonya Massey.

According to ABC News, the state’s attorney office found that Deputy Grayson was not justified in his use of deadly force after reviewing body cam footage and due to other components of the investigation.

Grayson has now been terminated from the sheriff’s office.

On July 6, Grayson and another deputy had gone to Massey’s residence, in Springfield, at about 12:50 a.m. This was because she is said to have seen “a prowler.”

After talking to Massey and having an interaction inside of her residence, Deputy Grayson fired his weapon, hitting and killing her.

She was declared deceased at a medical facility.

What caused the shooting isn’t known at this time.

Although Massey’s relatives were able to look at the body cam footage on Wednesday, it won’t be publicly released until Monday morning.

Grayson is still being held in custody and will appear in court again on Thursday.