IL - Sonya Massey Shot To Death In Her Own Home by Sangamon County Deputy After Calling to Report a Prowler, Springfield 6 July 2024

[tlcya]

9:41 a.m. Fultz also references Dep. Farley, who was almost through his one-year probation period for being a relatively new deputy with the sheriff's department. Fultz emphasizes that Dep. Farley could have been fired for virtually anything while being on probation.

9:40 a.m. Fultz says that it is almost inexcusable that all the evidence wasn’t gathered at the scene the first time around, referencing the pot Sonya Massey was using and the third bullet casing.
Day 7: closing arguments, jury deliberation in Sean Grayson trial for July 2024 murder

Still trying to suggest Farley (who if I remember rightly Grayson referred to as a "dumbass" on the scene after the shooting) is to blame for his own lethal shortcomings. GRRRRRR Farley, who didn't kill a citizen in her own kitchen after being called for help. Farley who attempted to render aid. Farley who had his body cam on as he should. Farley who considered quitting LE after the horrible events of that night.

I am praying the jury gets this right

 

[tlcya]

10:08 a.m. Fultz references Corbitt and Davis’s reports, which both concluded that Grayson’s use of force was warranted.

10:05 a.m. Fultz says Massey escalated the situation. Fultz: “As hard as that is to hear and accept, the outcome of this particular case was driven by Sonya Massey's actions.”

10:01 a.m. Fultz says that when Massey said, "I rebuke you in the name of Jesus,' Grayson believed that was a threat. Fultz says the jury doesn't have to agree with Grayson, but that’s what he believed.

9:58 a.m. Fultz says Sean Grayson was completely calm when he spoke with Sonya Massey before he heard the pot on the stove. Fultz says Grayson only started to show concern when Massey went into the kitchen to grab the pot.

9:52 a.m. Fultz said that Stoughton second-guessed every single decision Grayson made that night, while never having stood in Grayson’s shoes before.

9:47 a.m. Fultz mentions that Dr. Patterson, the forensic pathologist who performed Sonya Massey's autopsy, said that Massey's injuries would have been survivable. Fultz says Dr. Patterson hasn't had a live patient in many years, so he's not qualified to speak on that.

9:44 a.m. Fultz says Deputy Farley lied in his updated report to ISP because he didn't want to be criminally convicted.
Day 7: closing arguments, jury deliberation in Sean Grayson trial for July 2024 murder

 

[tlcya]

10:43 a.m. Milshier emphasizes that the defense told the jury not to let emotions dictate the outcome. Milhiser: "Huh, that’s what happened. The defendant [Grayson] let his emotions dictate the outcome of what happened in Sonya Massey’s kitchen.”

10:41 a.m. Judge Cadagin and the jury have re-entered the courtroom. Milhiser is presenting the rebuttal.
Day 7: closing arguments, jury deliberation in Sean Grayson trial for July 2024 murder

Get em John!! John Milhiser was instrumental in achieving justice for an elderly family member who was brutally raped and beaten in her own home 10 years ago. The perp in that case was only 19 years old at the time he committed multiple home invasions and assaults on elderly females. That man will always be a rock star in my eyes

 

[tlcya]

10:48 a.m. Milhiser breaks down that Kevin Davis’s report only referenced Massey’s actions and her “attack.” Milhiser tells the jury that this is a murder case and encourages them to trust what they see and hear in the video.
Day 7: closing arguments, jury deliberation in Sean Grayson trial for July 2024 murder

 

[ChatteringBirds]

When Grayson was on the stand, no one was allowed to ask him about the things he said and did after the shooting? I didn't miss that, right?

I feel if he actually thought he had done the right thing, he wouldn't have switched immediately into a defensive/blaming self-absorbed mode. He knew the shooting was not justified and immediately tried to distance himself from it/her. JMO.

 

[tlcya]

11:17 a.m. The people have finished the rebuttal. Judge Cadagin begins reading the jury instructions.

11:16 a.m. Milhiser grabs Grayson’s gun and the pot to show to the jury. Milhiser: “The defendant is guilty of first-degree murder.”

11:15 a.m. Milhiser: "These are the actions of a bully."

11:10 a.m. Grayson's bodycam footage now plays on the monitor.

11:09 a.m. Milhiser quotes when Grayson says he's not "wasting" his med kit. Milhiser wonders what's so important in the med kit that Grayson didn't want to waste. Milhiser opens the med kit and begins going through it in front of the jury.

11:07 a.m. Milhiser holds up the pot Massey held to the jury: "Here's this giant, dangerous pot." Grayson appears in discomfort.

11:06 a.m. One juror cries as she watches the footage. She holds her notepad up to her face to hide behind it.

11:03 a.m. Members of Sonya Massey's family leave the courtroom. Multiple members of Sonya Massey's family have started to cry. Sean Grayson is leaning forward over the table, not watching the monitor.

10:58 a.m. Milhiser: “This isn’t second-degree murder, this is first-degree murder.” Dep. Farley's bodycam footage is playing on the monitor. The video occasionally has captions that clarify what Massey and Grayson are saying.

Malachi Massey, Sonya's son, has walked out of the courtroom.
Day 7: closing arguments, jury deliberation in Sean Grayson trial for July 2024 murder

Well done John , compelling.

 

[tlcya]

When Grayson was on the stand, no one was allowed to ask him about the things he said and did after the shooting? I didn't miss that, right?

I feel if he actually thought he had done the right thing, he wouldn't have switched immediately into a defensive/blaming self-absorbed mode. He knew the shooting was not justified and immediately tried to distance himself from it/her. JMO.

if anyone questioned those things while he was on the stand the press made no mention of it. I so wish this case had been livetreamed.

 

[tlcya]

11:40 a.m. The court is in recess as the jury deliberates.

11:40 a.m. Bailiffs have been sworn in to ensure no one speaks to the jury.

11:35 a.m. Jurors number 14 and 15, the alternate jurors, have been excused at this time.

11:20 a.m. Judge Cadagin tells the jury that they can find Sean Grayson guilty of first-degree murder, not guilty of first-degree murder, or guilty of second-degree murder.
Day 7: closing arguments, jury deliberation in Sean Grayson trial for July 2024 murder

It's now in the jury's hands.

I have appreciated WICS, WAND and Capitol City Now for their coverage of this trial.

 

[tlcya]

Deliberations underway
11:50 a.m. Tuesday, October 28 — Carlee Bronkema

The media was asked to leave the courtroom as jury deliberation began. As we left, five members of the Grayson family were still in the courtroom. Eighteen members of the Massey family were still in the courtroom, many of them bent in their seats in prayer. Donna Massey, Sonya's mother, was outside the courtroom crying. Sonya's daughter and son were also still outside the courtroom.

A woman from Peoria was also waiting outside the courtroom. She provided lunch for the Massey family, telling them she wanted to make sure they felt cared for.
Trial Blog | Day 7: Jury deliberating in the Sean Grayson Murder Trial

 

[tlcya]

Jury deliberation underway in Sean Grayson murder trial

 

[tlcya]

"I think people are worried about what happens next if Sonya Massey doesn't get full justice," said Tiara Standage, one of the founders of the PURPLE (People United to Reform Power, Liberty and Equity) Coalition. "Second degree isn't enough."
Closing arguments finished; jury deliberating in Grayson murder trial

 

[Tragg]

The test is not what the defendant actually believed. It's what he reasonably believed. Unless there is a white nationalist [link removed] on the jury, this guy will be spending his life in prison. What an appalling murder!

 

[sunspun]

The test is not what the defendant actually believed. It's what he reasonably believed. Unless there is a white nationalist on the jury, this guy will be spending his life in prison. What an appalling murder!

Yes, the jury has to decide whether a reasonable person in the same situation would have acted the same. Or rather, what a reasonable person would do in the same situation and then compare to what Grayson did. The central question for the jury is whether a reasonable person, in the exact same circumstances as Grayson, would have perceived a threat of great bodily harm or death and acted the same way as he did and shot her in the head.

Actually, the bar is even higher here because Grayson was a cop and shot her in the line of duty. So it's actually for the jury to decide what a reasonable officer on the scene, not a "reasonable person" would do, and the reason that makes the bar higher is because the "reasonable officer" is presumed to possess the average skill, knowledge, and training of their profession and to act accordingly. Not appallingly! (to use your word!)

 

[sunspun]

He could have done other things that weren't lethal. He could have used his taser (yeah, I heard his excuses why he didn't) or did he have any other non-lethal method on him at the time? I don't know. Do they carry stun guns?

But I think his best choice of non-lethal option, that I KNOW he had on him at the time, was to move back! Create distance. I'm not saying he should have just left (although what would have been wrong with that??) But just stand further away! Because he knew that the only "weapon" she had to "hurt" him with was a pot of boiling water. So he also knew, just as anybody knows, the approximate range of that "weapon". He knew approximately how far away from that weapon he would have to be standing in order to be out of harm's way. He could easily have stepped back to get out of the range of her weapon. Step back, then from a point where he was safe, order her to drop the pot. If she moves forward, he can easily move also or use a barrier or something to block the harmful water if she throws it. Just repeating Drop it! would likely result in her setting it don and raising her hands, and nobody dies. So unnecessary. So tragic.

 

[tlcya]

what he should have done is contact the mental health mobile crisis team that is available 24/7 to come out on just such calls as this one the moment it became clear that Sonya was clearly struggling with a mental health issue.

 

[tlcya]

I like the way Milhiser emphasized that Grayson was an angry bully.

 

[tlcya]

1:17pm: Sources say jurors are watching the body-worn camera footage again.

The Massey family is an unused courtroom waiting it out. We are not sure where Grayson’s family is, but it’s possible they may be in another unused courtroom.
Sean Grayson Trial: Day 7 Blog - Capitol City Now

 

[Bodhi]

Deliberations underway
11:50 a.m. Tuesday, October 28 — Carlee Bronkema

The media was asked to leave the courtroom as jury deliberation began. As we left, five members of the Grayson family were still in the courtroom. Eighteen members of the Massey family were still in the courtroom, many of them bent in their seats in prayer. Donna Massey, Sonya's mother, was outside the courtroom crying. Sonya's daughter and son were also still outside the courtroom.

A woman from Peoria was also waiting outside the courtroom. She provided lunch for the Massey family, telling them she wanted to make sure they felt cared for.
Trial Blog | Day 7: Jury deliberating in the Sean Grayson Murder Trial

How incredibly kind of this woman!

 

[ChatteringBirds]

I wonder what his demeanor was like on the stand. Was he arrogant? Nervous? Sad at times?
Did he seem remorseful about any of it (such as not providing aid)?

 

[DS2021]

We just passed 4 hours