The former Illinois sheriff’s deputy on trial in the 2024 death of Sonya Massey testified Monday that he did not use his stun gun during the fatal encounter because he wasn't sure if it would work because of her clothing.
"I didn’t want to take the chance of the Taser malfunctioning," Sean Grayson told the court. "The Taser doesn't work on everybody."
Grayson, wearing a dark suit and a striped tie, spoke authoritatively and glanced alternatively at the lawyers questioning him and the jury as he recounted the moments leading up to the July 6, 2024, shooting. He and another deputy, Dawson Farley, had responded to Massey's Springfield home after she called police about a possible prowler.
Massey, 36, a Black mother of two, was shot and killed in her kitchen during an encounter with police in which she was holding a pot of boiling water as she was standing a few feet away from the officers.
Grayson, who is white, said that he “took it as a threat” when Massey told him, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus," while holding the pot. He said he perceived that Massey was about to throw boiling water at him and that’s the reason he drew his gun.
The exchange was captured on body camera video, which was publicly released and played in court last week.
He testified Monday about why he moved toward Massey when she picked up the pot, which witnesses for the prosecution had previously told the jury was "tactically unsound."
Grayson said he wanted to make sure Massey did not have other weapons on her, and he was going to attempt to put her in handcuffs to detain her for aggravated assault on a police officer.
The defense rested its case Monday, and closing arguments and jury deliberations are set to begin Tuesday.
The jury has heard from 15 witnesses, including Grayson, Farley, other Sangamon County deputies and supervisors, crime scene investigators, and expert law enforcement witnesses with conflicting conclusions about whether Grayson’s actions were warranted.
In describing the lead-up to the encounter during his testimony, Grayson testified that when he and Farley arrived at Massey’s home, they noticed a vehicle with broken windows parked outside. It was later determined that the car belonged to Massey, and it had previously been damaged.
As the two deputies approached Massey’s home, Grayson told the court that he could hear voices inside. He testified that he was concerned when no one immediately answered the door.
When Massey finally opened the door, Grayson said she told the deputies not to hurt her and said she needed help.
“She was kind of all over the place, she just kept jumping from thing to thing,” Grayson testified.
Grayson, whose body-worn camera starts rolling at a timecode 12 minutes after his partner’s on that night, admitted “I should have turned my body-camera on” when they started questioning her.
Initially, Grayson said he “did not notice anything off” once inside Massey’s home. He told the court that he became “concerned” when she jumped up and quickly went into her kitchen after Farley started walking toward the kitchen.
Grayson testified that Massey turned off the burner on the stove and “picks up the pot and she starts walking toward me.” He said he believed the pot was hot because she used oven mitts to pick it up.
“I wasn’t quite sure what she was going to do,” he told the court.
He testified Monday that when Massey said, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus,” he took that as a threat and thought she was going to throw the water at him.
Prosecutors said in court last week that the body-camera footage showed Massey wasn’t a real threat to Grayson.
He acknowledged that he had a stun gun on him but said that, in order for it to be effective, it would need to penetrate her clothes and both prongs hit her skin.
He said that after issuing a warning, he drew his gun, explaining, “we are trained to use force that will gain compliance” in order to get a threatening situation under control.
“You believe that was the only option you had that was lethal enough to stop the active threat?” defense attorney Daniel Fultz asked him.
“Yes,” Grayson replied.
On cross-examination, Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Milhiser said Grayson brought up “new information” that he approached Massey to put her in handcuffs for alleged aggravated assault on a police officer. Milhiser said Grayson had not included that information in his 2024 report on the shooting.
Milhiser also said Grayson never included in his report that he cussed at Massey and threatened to shoot her in the face.
In a redirect, Grayson said he didn’t think he had to document everything in his report because there was body camera video that showed the incident.
Sangamon County Sheriff's Deputy Jason Eccleston testified that he responded to the scene and spent four to five hours with Grayson after the shooting. He said Grayson seemed worked up and was sobbing and pacing.
Last week, the prosecution called expert witnesses in police training who testified that Grayson was not facing a credible threat and that he escalated the situation with his reaction.
On Monday, the defense called its own two expert witnesses, who argued that use of force can also be a de-escalation technique, and testified they believed Grayson's use of force was appropriate.
