Former deputy in Sonya Massey killing serving prison sentence, but state officials won’t say where

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(Capitol News Illinois) – Former Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy Sean Grayson, who was convicted last year of shooting an unarmed woman, has begun serving his 20-year prison sentence with the Illinois Department of Corrections in an undisclosed location.

IDOC confirmed that Grayson, 31, is in their custody but won’t confirm his whereabouts. A source close to the case said he has been moved out of state.

“For safety and security purposes, the Department will not discuss details concerning Individual Grayson,” an IDOC spokesman said in an email Thursday.

This could be for a number of reasons, including the high-profile nature of the crime, the fact that Grayson was a police officer, or that he is suffering from advanced forms of cancer and needs specialized care, one expert said.

“These types of individuals provide a special risk because there are plenty of people who will want to put out a hit on them or injure them simply because it will give them notoriety and status within the prison population,” said Lenard Vare, a former prison administrator and warden in the California and Nevada correctional systems who now works as a private consultant.

Grayson’s killing of an unarmed Sonya Massey in her kitchen drew nationwide attention, following the cases of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2020, making Grayson’s prosecution and eventual conviction national news.

Grayson was sentenced Jan. 29, three months after a jury convicted him of second-degree murder, and IDOC took him into custody that afternoon, according to Sangamon County Sheriff Paula Crouch.

Grayson’s name does not show up in the Illinois Department of Corrections online search for inmates.

Secrecy is not unusual

Once in their custody, IDOC would consider Grayson a high-profile inmate with unique security risks, Vare said. Corrections officials typically move high-profile inmates, like Grayson, to federal or even out-of-state facilities where media coverage has been less intense, he said.

Legal agreements between states, known as interstate compact agreements, allow for these moves for security and other considerations, Vare said.

Disclosing Grayson’s whereabouts could make it more difficult for IDOC to retain that placement or to place him in the future. Under the interstate compact, a state may choose whether to accept an inmate from another state based on security or other placement concerns.

Grayson’s status as a former law enforcement officer would also make him a security risk in the general prison population, Vare said.

Grayson shares notoriety and former law enforcement status with former Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke, who was also convicted of second-degree murder in the shooting of Laquan McDonald in 2016. Van Dyke was sentenced to 81 months in prison. IDOC released Van Dyke in 2022, after he served less than half of his sentence in a prison outside of Illinois.

What happened that night?

Grayson and his partner responded to Sonya Massey’s home the night of July 6, 2024, after she called 911 to report a prowler. Family members have said that Massey, a Black woman, was suffering from a mental health crisis.

During the call, Grayson, and his partner cleared the outside of the house, finding no prowler, but entered Massey’s home to question her further. During that exchange and under Grayson’s direction, Massey went to the stove to remove a pot of boiling water.

As Massey did so she said, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.”

Grayson responded, “I’ll f—ing shoot you right in the f—ing face” and drew his gun. Seconds later, Grayson fired three times, fatally wounding Massey with one shot in the head.

Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Milhiser charged Grayson with first-degree murder in the days after the shooting.

Following Massey’s death, questions emerged related to Grayson’s hiring. Media reported he received a general discharge from the Army, was twice convicted of driving under the influence and received verbal discipline related to an unauthorized high-speed chase and insubordination when he worked at the Logan County Sheriff’s Office.

Then-Sheriff Jack Campbell retired amid controversy over Grayson’s hiring, but recently defended the decision, stating the hiring was based on the information he had available to him.

Judge Ryan Cadagin moved Grayson’s trial to Peoria County due to pre-trial publicity after Grayson’s attorneys asserted that he would not get a fair trial in Sangamon County. In October, a Peoria County jury found the former deputy guilty of second-degree murder.

He is battling cancer

In addition to the safety concerns because of his notoriety, Grayson requires medical treatment for the colon cancer he has been battling for years.

At his sentencing last month, Grayson’s attorney Mark Wykoff said the cancer had progressed and spread to his liver and lungs. Doctors have also diagnosed Grayson with rectal cancer.

While he was in the Macon County Jail in Decatur awaiting trial, records showed that deputies drove Grayson to a Springfield hospital where he received weekly treatments.

Any state considering accepting Grayson into their correctional system would have reviewed his medical records to determine whether they could medically accommodate him, Vare said.

There are also private facilities that accept inmates with challenging medical conditions that may accept Grayson in exchange for state payment.

“It’s kind of a rent-a-bed situation,” Vale said.

Life expectancy with Stage 4 colon cancer varies, but the five-year survival rate when the cancer has spread to liver and lungs is around 13%, according to the American Cancer Association.

With time already served in county jail and if he receives day-for-day credit for good behavior, Grayson would be eligible for release in 8 ½ years.

(Reporting by Beth Hundsdorfer, Capitol News Illinois)

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation. 

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