Sean Grayson, the Sangamon County sheriff deputy who fatally shot Sonya Massey in July, will not be released from jail on Friday after his court hearing was postponed to January 2, 2025.
The hearing, which was scheduled for Friday, December 6, would have established “least restrictive conditions” Grayson’s release, but it was called off without an explanation.
Grayson, was expected to be released that day after an Illinois Appellate Court ruled he was wrongfully detained when he was arrested and charged with killing the Black woman.
The appellate court disagreed with a lower court and said Grayson was improperly detained based on his perceived threat after Massey’s death. At a new detainment hearing on Monday, December 2, a judge ordered that Grayson be released from custody after the court sets some ground rules.
After the Appellate Court’s ruling Monday Massey’s father, James Wilburn, spoke to reporters and said he was not happy to learn Grayson could be released with restrictions ahead of the trial.
“When my daughter can get up and walk out of that cemetery then he can get out of jail,” Wilburn said.
Tiara Standage, an activist with Intricate Minds Springfield said the ruling was a miscarriage of justice.
“They’re spending their first holidays without their loved one and he could possibly spend his holidays with his family. That’s unfair. And it’s a continuous reminder that our lives don’t matter. And that’s why we continue to stand up and say that Black lives matter.”
Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Milhiser plans to appeal the appellate court ruling to the Illinois Supreme Court and ask for a stay on the court’s decision. If the Supreme Court decides to grant the stay before Friday, Grayson would not be released.
The Illinois Supreme Court will only weigh in on the question of whether Grayson should be detained or not. The high court will have no say on whether Grayson is found guilty on his charges of first-degree murder.
Grayson’s arrest and legal battle over his detainment pose a test to the new pre-trial detention system established in the SAFE-T Act.
Milhiser and his team tried to argue that Grayson would pose a risk to the community if he was released pre-trial.
But the three-judge panel rejected the prosecutor’s argument, saying it was not strong enough to meet the bar for detention under the SAFE-T Act.
A judge in the Appellate Court ruling wrote, “… The State failed to supply sufficient evidence, so we hold the State responsible by reversing the court’s detention order outright and placing the parties in the same position they would have been had the court properly denied the State’s petition and proceeded to a hearing on conditions of release.”
The Appellate Court ruled that Grayson’s time in law enforcement and the fact that he killed Massey on the job does not set him to a different standard under Illinois’ new law.
“In considering whether defendant poses a danger justifying his pretrial detention in the interim, however, the question is not whether he will meet the high expectations of a law enforcement officer; the question is whether, as a private citizen, he poses a danger to the public that cannot be mitigated by appropriate conditions of pretrial release,” the Appellate Court wrote in its ruling.
“The trial court’s focus on defendant’s failings as a law enforcement officer, while understandable, distracted from the central question of how to address any risk he posed after being stripped of his office.”
The next status hearing for this case was scheduled for January.
On July 6, Massey called 911 about a possible prowler in or around her house. Grayson and another officer arrived on the scene and found nothing after searching the vicinity. After entering Massey’s house, the deputies requested her ID, and Massey began searching for it.
When Grayson asked Massey, who had mental health issues, to remove a pot of boiling water from the stove, Massey lifted the pot and said twice, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.” Grayson threatened to shoot her in the face and drew his gun.
Massey then apologized and dropped to the floor to avoid being shot. Grayson then shot her three times, hitting Massey in the head and ultimately killing her. The other deputy stated that he was going to get their medical kit, but Grayson told him not to.
After the shooting, Grayson was fired from the Sangamon County Sheriff’s office and charged with three counts of first-degree murder, among other charges.
Facing mounting pressure, embattled Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell resigned from the force.
