Sean Grayson Worked In 6 Departments In 4 Years Before Killing Sonya Massey

Sean Grayson — the Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy charged with murder after he shot Sonya Massey in her apartment while she wielded only a pot of water — worked six law enforcement jobs over the past four years, pleaded guilty to two charges of driving under the influence, and was discharged from the Army for “serious misconduct.”

Now Massey’s family wants answers on how Sangamon County came to hire him and put a gun in his hands.

Grayson, 30, was indicted on three counts of first-degree murder by a grand jury on July 17. He and another Sangamon County deputy responded to Massey’s home after she called about a possible intruder. The local district attorney’s office released a 36-minute body camera video on Monday that showed Massey, a Black woman, unarmed and ducking for cover moments before Grayson shot her in the head.

Massey’s family says Grayson should not have been working for the department due to his past. “There were all these red flags, and yet they still made him a deputy in this county,” James Wilburn, Massey’s father, said at her funeral.

Grayson worked part-time with the Pawnee Police Department from Aug. 11, 2020 to July 26, 2021, and then took another part-time job with the Kincaid Police Department from Feb. 4, 2021 to May 18, 2021, according to records from the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board.

Two days later, Grayson started part-time with the Virden Police Department on May 20, 2021. Then, on July 20, 2021, he started working full-time with the Auburn Police Department. After leaving Virden in December and Auburn the following May, Grayson worked full-time with the Logan County Sheriff’s Office beginning in May 2022. He left in April 2023 and started working with the