SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) — Sean Grayson, the former Sheriff’s deputy accused of killing Sonya Massey, is now asking for evidence to be admitted in his court case that he and his lawyers say backs up his claim of self-defense in the Springfield woman’s death.
Grayson and his attorneys filed three motions on Wednesday, asking that Judge Ryan Cadagin admit evidence showing two things about Massey: her existing state of mind and alleged propensity for violence. The third motion was a cease-and-desist order, asking that the Massey Commission end alleged activities in Peoria County, where Grayson’s trial will take place.
In their motions, Grayson’s lawyers claimed that Massey was “purported to have been mentally troubled” in the days and hours before her death, and that in the days before, she was involved in acts of violence with neighbors.
The lawyers said that on June 27, 2024, Massey texted a person she knew that she needed help.
“Sonya told him/her they will kill her and she is thankful for him/her. Sonya stated she is thankful for everything,” the lawyers said. “Sonya stated she is not ok, she is about to die at St. John’s [Hospital] and they are taking her to Granite City.”
Grayson’s lawyers added that, according to Massey’s son, she had attacked a neighbor with a brick on July 5, 2024, the day before she died.
“According to Ms. Massey’s son, the neighbor was ‘distraught and confused as to why his mother Sonya had chased and hit her,'” the lawyers wrote. “Another neighbor…reported to the Illinois State Police that ‘Sonya and her neighbor…had been in a dispute the day prior in reference to a car window being broke.'”
Grayson’s lawyers said that the same day, Massey’s mother Donna called 911 to report her daughter was having a mental breakdown and was paranoid. Springfield Police responded to that call and spoke with Massey while she was tended to by EMTs and a clinician from Memorial Behavioral Health.
Later in the day, at 1:31 p.m., both Massey and Donna went to the ER of HSHS St. John’s Hospital.
“According to her mother, Ms. Massey had busted out her car window and advised medical staff she ‘was recently diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic,'” Grayson’s lawyers said.
Massey left the ER at 6:44 p.m. without being seen by staff, the lawyers said. Six hours later, she called 911 to report a prowler around her home.
30 minutes after that, Grayson’s body camera recorded him shooting Massey dead. Grayson claimed Massey was in the process of throwing a pot of steaming water at him.
“Evidence of her violent history is not only admissible, but necessary to establish who was the first aggressor in the events at dispute,” Grayson’s lawyers wrote. “After all the Illinois State Police’s self-purported ‘Subject Matter Expert regarding Use of Force Incident Review’ memorialized…’as Deputy Grayson continued to instruct Mrs. Massey to drop the pot and approached the cabinets, Mrs. Massey threw the steaming hot water from the pot.'”
“Here, [Massey’s] then existing state of mind is central to the ultimate question as to whether the defendant’s belief that the employment of deadly force was reasonable and justified,” Grayson’s lawyers added. “Statements made by the declarant…in near proximity to the events at dispute regarding her then existing mental condition are relevant and material to resolve that question.'”
In addition to the motions to admit new evidence about Massey, Grayson and his lawyers asked that the judge bar the Massey Commission, established after the deadly shooting, from acting in Peoria County. Grayson’s trial was moved there to avoid a jury potentially biased against Grayson.
“One of the specific bases for moving to change the place of trial involved the formation, activities and media generated by the Massey Commission…Peorians not having been exposed to this peculiarly persuasive material,” Grayson’s lawyers said. “Subsequent to the court granting the defendant’s motion for a change of place of trial, the Massey Commission…has now embarked on a mission to ‘educate’ the citizens of Peoria County on the Massey matter. Whether intended or not, the effect of this is that the Commission is potentially tainting the Peoria County jury pool.
When asked for comment, Massey Commission representative Adam White provided a brief response in which he denied the claim of the commission acting in Peoria County:
The Massey Commission, created by the Sagamon County Board in response to the brutal murder of Sonya Massey in Springfield, fully understands and is committed to the work of building a more equitable and a more transparent Sangamon County.
Neither the Massey Commission, nor any Commissioner, has acted in an official capacity in Peoria County.
Adam White, Public Engagement Manager
White also said that the commission will provide a longer statement on Thursday once commissioners speak with the Massey family, which is traveling back to Illinois from a trip out of state.
WCIA also reached out to Grayson’s lawyers for comment but did not hear back.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
