In wake of Massey shooting, Sangamon County target of DOJ Investigation

[November 19, 2024]  By Beth Hundsdorfer

The Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office is under investigation by the U. S. Department of Justice for civil rights violations, but the probe may go beyond the fatal shooting of Sonya Massey.

The U.S. Department of Justice’s civil rights probe will investigate the sheriff’s department, but also Sangamon County Central Dispatch and the county itself.

The investigation began after Massey, a Black woman, was shot on July 6 after reporting a prowler outside her home. Deputy Sean Grayson, who is white, shot an unarmed Massey in her kitchen. Grayson faces charges of first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct.

In the weeks after the murder, Capitol News Illinois confirmed the Justice Department was “assessing the circumstances” of Massey’s death. A six-page letter dated Nov. 14 from the DOJ’s civil rights division detailed the scope of the investigation, stating, “the incident raises serious concerns about SCSO’s interactions with Black people and people with behavioral health disabilities, as well as SCSO’s policies, practices, procedures, and training.”

The letter stated that DOJ has “reviewed reports concerning SCSO’s employment practices, including allegations that a lack of racial diversity at SCSO impacts SCSO’s provision of policing services in communities of color.”

Records obtained from the Illinois Law Enforcement Training Standards Board show the last Black deputy Sangamon County hired was Cortez Wade Luttrell, in December 2020. He left in January 2024 to join the Springfield Police Department. Sangamon County has a Black population of nearly 13 percent, according to census data.

Records showed that 13 other individuals who are Black were hired as certified law enforcement personnel during the same period but work as correctional officers or court security personnel.

As part of their investigation, DOJ requested information related to hiring, including a description of the hiring process for deputies, recruitment, background checks, psychiatric testing, references and selection processes.

Prior to his hiring at Sangamon County, Grayson had two DUI convictions and had worked for six central Illinois police departments in four years.

DOJ also asked the sheriff’s office to provide a list of all candidates for a deputy position that included their race and ethnicity, gender, date of application and hire, and whether the candidate had previous law enforcement experience. For disqualified candidates, the request sought the date and reason for disqualification. The request also seeks information on whether the candidate had any family members currently or previously employed by the sheriff’s office.

At the time of the shooting, Grayson was engaged to the daughter of longtime Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office employee Scott Butterfield.

The letter requested a far-ranging collection of documents from records of citizen complaints at the sheriff’s office to dispatcher training. The county has 10 days to discuss with the Justice Department how to get the material to them.

If the county does not cooperate, DOJ can suspend or terminate federal money to the county. The DOJ can also file suit to enforce anti-discrimination laws if a resolution is not achieved after the investigation is completed.

Sangamon County Complex (Capitol News Illinois file photo)

“We aim to meet the deadlines outlined in the DOJ’s request and look forward to their conclusions and recommendations. This process is an important step in building community-wide confidence and strengthening our delivery of fair and effective services to the residents of Sangamon County,” Sheriff Paula Crouch said in a statement.

The Justice Department also requested traffic and pedestrian stop data, including the race of the person stopped. It also requested documentation of the sheriff’s department and dispatchers’ process for handling citizen complaints alleging discrimination and the outcomes of those complaints.

DOJ also requested training records and policies related to use of force, de-escalation and responding to calls involving people with disabilities.

Experts have said that Grayson missed opportunities during the call to de-escalate the situation and unreasonably used force against Massey, who was experiencing a mental health crisis.

“While the volume of material requested is substantial, we understand and respect the need for thorough analysis, and we will be bringing in professional staff to assist in compiling the data to ensure accuracy and completeness,” Crouch said in the statement.

But the DOJ’s request for information doesn’t end at the sheriff’s office. The letter also requests information from Sangamon County and Sangamon County Central Dispatch System.

The letter said the incident and prior 911 calls involving Massey in the days before her death “indicate possible issues” with the county, as well as central dispatch and the sheriff’s office.

In the days before her death, Massey had been discharged from an in-patient behavioral health unit. She had also been in contact with mental health crisis teams in the hours before her death.

DOJ requested dispatch logs from Jan. 1, 2020, to present. Specifically, DOJ wanted calls seeking help for a person experiencing a mental health crisis, policies for identifying and responding to calls involving someone with a behavioral health disability and interacting with someone who has a behavioral health disability.

Also, the Justice Department sought any training records and materials dispatchers received related to interacting with those who have a disability.

DOJ has requested organizational charges for Sangamon County from Jan. 1, 2020, to present and the names of Americans with Disabilities Act coordinators for the county, the sheriff’s office and central dispatch.

Though the investigation is centered on law enforcement, legal experts say it could broaden to include any service provided by the county, including housing, health services and other county services.

Reporter Janelle O’Dea of the Illinois Answers Project provided data support for this story.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.