this post was submitted on 29 Jan 2026

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1021

Cop gets 20 years for fatally shooting woman who called 911 for help (www.independent.co.uk)

submitted 2 weeks ago by tyrant@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world

131 comments fedilink hide all child comments

A former Illinois deputy has been sentenced to 20 years for fatally shooting Sonya Massey, a Black woman who called 911 for help.

Sean Grayson, 31, was convicted in October of second-degree murder. Grayson, who is white, received the maximum possible sentence and has been in police custody since being charged in the killing.

Massey’s family members, who were sitting in the court, celebrated his sentence with a loud cheer: “Yes!” The judge admonished them.

Grayson apologized during the sentencing, saying he wished he could bring Massey back and spare her family the pain he caused.

“I made a lot of mistakes that night. There were points when I should’ve acted, and I didn’t. I froze,” he said. “I made terrible decisions that night. I’m sorry.”

(page 2) 50 comments

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[–] rumba@lemmy.zip 10 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

According to body camera footage, Grayson and sheriff’s Deputy Dawson Farley, who was not charged, searched Massey's yard before meeting her at her door. Massey appeared confused and repeatedly said, “Please, God.” The deputies entered her house, Grayson noticed the pot on the stove and ordered Farley to move it. Instead, Massey went to the stove, retrieved the pot and teased Grayson for moving away from “the hot, steaming water.” From this moment, the exchange quickly escalated. Massey said: “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.” Grayson drew his sidearm and yelled at her to drop the pan. She set the pot down and ducked behind a counter. But she appeared to pick it up again. That's when Grayson opened fire on the 36-year-old single mother, shooting her in the face. He testified that he feared Massey would scald him. Grayson was charged with three counts of first-degree murder, which could have led to a life sentence, but a jury convicted him of the lesser charge. Illinois allows for a second-degree murder conviction if evidence shows the defendant honestly thought he was in danger, even if that fear was unreasonable.

That's a pretty fucked up situation. Would have been nice if they would have just left.

There has to be more to it than the article quotes,

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[–] melsaskca@lemmy.ca 7 points 2 weeks ago

You hear that ICE? Sometimes the piper got to be paid.

[–] MehBlah@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Nice skull tats that asshole has.

[–] mattyroses@lemmy.today 4 points 2 weeks ago

"are we the baddies?"

[–] Hadriscus@jlai.lu 6 points 2 weeks ago

Reading about this story is nauseating. I am happy for her family, that there was a semblance of justice here.

[–] LoafedBurrito@lemmy.world 6 points 2 weeks ago

20 years isn't enough for his lack of empathy for a woman who did nothing wrong and was simply trying to get help and make dinner.

He had a license to kill and used it and didn't think he would be held accountable.

[–] xc2215x@lemmy.world 4 points 2 weeks ago

Good. Sean deserves it.

[–] m3t00@lemmy.world 4 points 2 weeks ago

Pretti murder reminded me of this one. should have got life.

[–] Modern_medicine_isnt@lemmy.world 3 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

At the same time, this was clearly a mental health issue. Cops just shouldn't be sent alone to deal with those. They aren't trained for it, and many aren't trainable because it wasn't part of the hiring criteria and they just don't have the skills. We need an addition group trained for this that can better handle these things. That way no one has to die, and we don't have to spend tons of taxpayer money because a cop was put in a position he was clearly unqualified for. Probably shouldn't even have been a cop. But with high demand and low supply, they end up taking lots of people who should never be cops. Maybe this guy could have lead a happy and productive life as a plumber or something.

[–] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 5 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

I've worked for several small cities that had specialist officers for mental health issues, and they really were excellent. If more cities spent 10% of that Swat money on mental health officers, they would significantly improve public safety.

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[–] Quexotic 5 points 2 weeks ago

Agreed. Maybe if we had adequate affordable healthcare... Naww, more money for ICE and the military. Even under Democrat rule, all they do is stall and choke.

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