Sean Grayson’s attorneys seek new trial after murder conviction
[December 04, 2025]
By Illinois Times
Former Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy Sean Grayson’s lawyers say he
deserves a new trial for the 2024 murder of Sonya Massey because the
presiding judge erred when allowing the jury to hear Grayson’s
disparaging remarks about Massey after the fatal shooting.
“As a result, the events following the shooting had no relevance to the
issues in the case,” attorneys Daniel Fultz and Mark Wykoff wrote in
their Nov. 26 motion for a new trial. “The only purpose served by the
introduction of that evidence was to improperly inflame the passions of
the jury – which was substantially prejudicial to the defendant.”
Sangamon County Circuit Judge Ryan Cadagin is expected to rule on that
argument, and others in the motion, at the scheduled Jan. 29 sentencing
of Grayson.
Second-degree murder conviction
The 31-year-old Riverton resident, currently incarcerated at the
Sangamon County Jail, was convicted Oct. 29 of second-degree murder
after a trial that was moved to Peoria County because of concerns that
extensive pretrial publicity would make it too hard to select an
unbiased jury in Sangamon County.
The jury of nine women and three men – all Peoria County residents –
found that Grayson’s fatal shooting of Massey, 36, in her unincorporated
Woodside Township home on July 6, 2024, met all of the criteria for a
first-degree murder conviction.
But the jury opted for the less-serious second-degree murder conviction
because of a mitigating factor. The jury found that Grayson believed he
was acting in self-defense but still deserved to be convicted of murder
because that belief was unreasonable.
Requests for a new trial and for a conviction to be thrown out, which
also is part of Grayson’s motion, are almost never granted at the trial
court level. However, the arguments presented in the motion, as well as
whatever sentence Grayson receives, could be cited in any appeal
Grayson’s lawyers will be allowed to file in the next few months.
Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Milhiser, who prosecuted the
murder case with First Assistant State’s Attorney Mary Beth Rodgers,
said the defense’s motion “is standard practice after a trial. We do not
believe there is any merit to the defendant’s assertions in his motion
and are preparing and will file our written response.”
A second-degree murder conviction carries a potential penalty of four to
20 years in prison, with the potential for any time served to be cut in
half for good behavior. With credit for time served and good behavior,
Grayson could end up serving, at most, fewer than 10 years in prison.
A second-degree murder conviction also would allow Cadagin to sentence
Grayson to probation and no prison time.
A first-degree murder conviction in this case would have carried a
mandatory 45 years to life in prison without the possibility of
probation.
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Motion focuses on post-shooting footage
The motion for a new trial said Cadagin unfairly allowed the jury to see
police-worn camera video of the fatal confrontation inside Massey’s home
that included Grayson’s statements and actions after the shooting even
though Grayson’s lawyers asked before the trial that the jury not be
shown the post-shooting footage.
“The video featured the defendant’s coarse language and graphic
depictions of Ms. Massey’s injuries,” the motion said. “The defendant
argued that the strong, negative emotional associations could improperly
influence the jury’s impartiality.”
Experts who testified at the trial at Milhiser’s request said Grayson,
who responded to Massey’s 911 call about her suspicion of a prowler in
the neighborhood, failed to realize that she was dealing with mental
illness and modify his behavior.
The experts said Grayson let his temper get the best of him and provoked
a confrontation rather than taking steps to de-escalate the situation.
Experts called by the defense contradicted conclusions reached by the
prosecution’s experts.
With another deputy at his side, Grayson shot Massey in the face after a
tense few seconds in which he yelled that she wasn’t complying with his
orders to put down a pot of hot water from her stove.
A few frames of bodycam video – shown in freeze frames to the jury but
undetectable to the regular viewer – showed her lifting the pot over her
head and starting to throw the water in Grayson’s direction when Grayson
fired three shots at Massey, with one of the bullets striking her.
‘This f—ing b—h is crazy’
When Grayson was outside Massey’s house, his own body-worn camera
recorded him telling other police officers, “This f—ing b—h is crazy”
and “it f—ing happened so god—n quick. … She set it up on purpose. … I
didn’t have a f—ing choice. … We barely got missed.”
Elsewhere in Grayson’s motion for a new trial, his lawyers said Cadagin
erred when he ordered Grayson detained before his trial. The Fourth
District Appellate Court agreed with Grayson’s lawyers, but prosecutors
appealed to the Illinois Supreme Court, which ordered Grayson detained
until the high court made a final ruling.
The Supreme Court ultimately didn’t rule before the trial in Peoria
County. The court then dismissed the appeal as moot.
The motion also faulted Cadagin for barring the use of certain phrases
and opinions by the defense’s experts during the trial, and for
rejecting a jury instruction proposed by the defense on the
justification for police use of force.
In addition, the motion said Cadagin shouldn’t have prevented the
defense from introducing evidence about Massey’s “propensity for
violence” based on her behavior the day before the early morning
shooting. |
