Illinois officer who killed Sonya Massey dismissed from the force for drunk driving – NBC Chicago

The Illinois sheriff’s deputy charged in the gunshot death of Sonya Massey was dismissed from the force for the first of two drunken driving convictions in which he had a gun in his car, authorities said. But that didn’t stop multiple law enforcement agencies from giving him a badge.

Before he began his police career with six jobs in four years – the first three of which were part-time – 30-year-old Sean Grayson was convicted of drunk driving twice within a year, costing him his military service.

Law enforcement experts said the convictions and his prior employment history should have raised serious questions when the Sangamon County sheriff hired him in May 2023.

Grayson, who has since been fired, is charged with first-degree murder, aggravated assault with a firearm and official misconduct in the death of Massey, a 36-year-old black woman who called 911 about a suspected burglar at her home in Springfield, 200 miles (320 kilometers) southwest of Chicago. Grayson, who is white, has pleaded not guilty.

“Six jobs in four years should have been a red flag. And you would wonder why he wasn’t hired full-time for one of those (part-time) jobs,” said Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum, a think tank in Washington, D.C. “Combined with a record of drunken driving, that would be enough to warrant further investigation into whether or not he would be a good fit.”

Grayson, who enlisted in the Army in 2014, was charged with driving under the influence in Macoupin County, just south of Sangamon County, following traffic stops on Aug. 10, 2015, and again on July 26, 2016.

His first drunken driving charge led to his discharge from the military in February 2016 for “serious misconduct,” according to a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss personal information. He added that Grayson had an unregistered weapon in his vehicle.

Macoupin County District Attorney Jordan Garrison confirmed that police found a gun in the center console, but Grayson was not charged with weapons possession because he lived in Fort Riley, Kansas. Kansas has an open carry law.

Grayson received a general discharge with honorable conditions—rather than an honorable discharge—because he had been charged by a civilian law enforcement agency and his military service was otherwise good.

His attorney, Daniel Fultz, declined to comment Monday.

A misdemeanor DUI doesn’t legally disqualify someone from working for the police, said Sean Smoot, chairman of the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board, but a staffing agency could certainly consider it.

“Some police departments wouldn’t have hired someone with one DUI,” Smoot said. “I’m shocked that an agency would hire someone with two DUIs, but several agencies apparently have.”

Massey’s father, James Wilburn, has called for the resignation of Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell. “He has no intention of resigning,” Campbell spokesman Jeff Wilhite said.

A statement from Campbell’s office revealed that the county merit commission and the state law enforcement board recommended that Grayson be certified as an officer despite his DUI. He passed a drug test, a background check, a psychological evaluation and a 16-week course.

Before coming to Springfield, Grayson worked for a year as a deputy sheriff in Logan County, just northeast of the city. According to a report obtained through a public records request, he was told he needed more training, including “lessons in decision-making under high stress,” in November 2022 after he failed to obey an order to stop a high-speed chase that saw him reach speeds of 110 mph (177 km/h) before colliding with a deer.

When he applied for a job at Logan, an employment report from Auburn, south of Springfield, where he had previously worked, showed that while Grayson always showed up for work early, enjoyed training, was open to criticism and had never been disciplined, he had difficulty writing reports, was “not good with evidence – he left stuff lying around the office” and was “a show-off.”

Logan County records also contain misconduct complaints from two individuals Grayson arrested, including one in which a woman who admitted to having drugs in a body cavity alleged that Grayson gave her a glove and told her to remove the contraband for him and another male officer. She was later taken to a hospital to have it removed, and alleged that Grayson burst through the curtain during the procedure. He denied both complaints and resigned from Logan County before the investigation was completed.

Body camera footage from the night of the shooting shows Grayson and another officer finding no evidence of an intruder. They wait several minutes for Massey to respond. During that time, Grayson says she’s dead inside and calls out for her impatiently.

Massey, who has struggled with mental health issues, appears confused and says, “Don’t hurt me.” Grayson sometimes responds condescendingly or impatiently.

“His behavior before, during and after the incident suggests that this man was a loose cannon, and that’s putting it mildly,” said Kalfani Ture, a former police officer who is now an assistant professor of criminal justice at Widener University in Chester, Pennsylvania, and an instructor at the New York Police Department’s academy.

At Massey’s house, Grayson is seen ordering a pot of water to be removed from a flame on the stove. Massey appears to place the pot by the sink. The two joke about Grayson walking away from her “hot, steaming water” and Massey inexplicably says, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.”

That prompts Grayson to pull out his gun. Massey apologizes and ducks behind a counter, but when Grayson yells at her to drop the jar, she appears to pick it up again. Grayson fires three times, hitting her in the face, and makes no attempt to provide medical aid because, “That’s a headshot.”

“That is not characteristic of a police officer. That is characteristic of someone who has a depraved indifference to human life,” Ture said. “And this incident is not an aberration. Someone like this is quite consistent in exhibiting that kind of profile.”

Ture said Massey likely picked up the pan again because she was confused by the shouted commands. He was too quick to resort to deadly force — he had other options, including using a stun gun, chemical spray or simply subduing the small woman, Ture said.

When he pulled his gun, the incident escalated, Wexler said.

“He should have slowed down, communicated, had a plan B, and known where the door was to get out of the house. He should not have put himself in a position where he had no choice but to use deadly force by standing still, drawing his weapon and shouting commands,” Wexler said.