Family of Sonya Massey agrees to $10M settlement over fatal shooting

The family of Sonya Massey has agreed to a $10 million settlement with Sangamon County, Ill., a year after the 36-year-old Black woman was shot and killed by police officers in her own home.

The settlement was reached late last week after mediation between lawyers representing both parties and now heads to the county board for approval. The board will meet next Tuesday to vote on the agreement.

Massey was fatally shot by deputy Sean Grayson last July after she called police to report a prowler outside her home.

Upon officers’ arrival, Massey immediately said, “Don’t hurt me.”

The officers entered her home, where they spotted a pot sitting on the stove. Grayson pointed to the pot and said, “We don’t need a fire while we’re here.”

Massey moved the pot near a sink before stating, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.”

“You better [expletive] not or I swear to God I’ll [expletive] shoot you in your [expletive] face,” Grayson responded before he pulled out his 9mm pistol and demanded Massey drop the pot.

“OK, I’m sorry,” Massey responded. But as she ducked and raised her hands, Grayson pointed his weapon at her.

Though Grayson was still in the living room, with a counter between himself and Massey, he shot her three times. One hit her in the head, a fatal blow.

Then Grayson tried to discourage his partner from providing first aid to Massey.

“You can go get it, but that’s a headshot,” he said. “There’s nothing you can do, man.”

In November, the Department of Justice (DOJ) opened an investigation into the shooting, saying the incident raised “serious concerns about SCSO’s interactions with Black people and people with behavioral health disabilities.”

Last month, the DOJ and the county sheriff’s office announced a deal requiring local officials to enact a series of changes, including more training and use-of-force data reporting. The memorandum of agreement found no discriminatory practices by the sheriff’s office or the emergency dispatch operation in Massey’s death.

Grayson was fired from the sheriff’s office and faces a first-degree murder charge.

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