PEORIA, Ill. (WICS) — We are covering the trial of Sean Grayson for the murder of Sonya Massey in July 2024. Day six will include questioning more witnesses by the State and the Defense.
The State has called 11 witnesses so far. Follow along here for live updates straight from the courtroom.
Oct. 27
1:55 p.m. Wykoff asks if it is a generally accepted practice or principle that an officer should create distance between an armed subject for self-preservation. Davis says yes and no, and that a tactic is dependent on circumstances.
1:51 p.m. Davis said Grayson made attempts to de-escalate the situation, particularly when Grayson asked Massey to put down the pot of water.
1:50 p.m. Davis says de-escalation is a concept that has gathered steam within law enforcement over the last few years, establishing that the use of force is unnecessary in some situations.
1:42 p.m. Davis says the totality-of-the-circumstances analysis ends once the force has been applied or is no longer being used. Davis says what happens after that is irrelevant to the conclusion one draws in a report.
1:36 p.m. Wykoff asks Davis what conclusion he reached based on the materials he received, including the Sangamon County Use of Force Policy. Davis says he believes Sean Grayson’s decision to employ lethal force was warranted.
1:30 p.m. Davis has been declared an expert in the use of force and in use-of-force investigations.
1:20 p.m. The next witness called by the Defense is Kevin R Davis, a retired law enforcement officer who worked in Akron, Ohio. Davis runs his own consulting and expert witness firm.
1:18 p.m. Judge Cadagin asks the attorneys to approach for a quick conversation
1:17 p.m. Wykoff redirects by confirming that, although Corbitt doesn’t address generally accepted practices in his report, they are implied because Corbitt’s training and analysis already follow them—no further questions from either side.
1:14 p.m. Corbitt believes Sean Grayson achieved de-escalation. Rodgers: “You believe shooting Sonya Massey in the face was successful de-escalation?” Corbitt says yes—no further questions from the State.
1:13 p.m. Rodgers asks Corbitt in his synopsis or full report on the case, how many times he uses the terms ‘generally accepted principles or practices’. Corbitt doesn’t use the terms at all.
1:10 p.m. Rodgers approaches Corbitt with a synopsis he has written of the case. Rodgers questions Corbitt about his definition of de-escalation. Corbitt agrees that it would be ideal if de-escalation could be achieved through verbal communication, but that’s not always the case.
1:01 p.m. Judge Cadagin and the jury have re-entered the courtroom. Rodgers begins to cross-examine Corbitt.
11:36 a.m. As a use-of-force investigator, Corbitt says you have to conduct analysis objectively and shouldn’t look at it through 20/20 hindsight. Wykoff has no further questions. We will continue with the State’s cross-examination after lunch at 1 p.m.
11:34 a.m. Corbitt determines that Grayson’s use of force was appropriate, drawing on his years of experience and training, and recognizing that officers must make difficult decisions and are not robots.
11:28 a.m. Corbitt says the facts perceived matter when creating a report, and that Massey’s intentions with the pot don’t matter at all —only the officer’s perception matters.
11:22 a.m. Corbitt concluded that Grayson tried to de-escalate the situation. He says that the crisis intervention perspective of the situation changed to a use-of-force incident due to a perceived imminent threat, given the totality of the circumstances.
11:21 a.m. Rodgers objects to leading questions; Wykoff rephrases his question.
11:20 a.m. Corbitt says Massey’s grabbing the pot escalated the event, and that if Massey had put the pot down and poured the water out into the sink, it would’ve de-escalated the event.
11:19 a.m. Wykoff asks if Dep. Farley had turned off the stove when Grayson asked him if that could have possibly de-escalated the event. Corbitt: “At that moment, I didn’t think there was an event, but that would have prevented an event from happening.”
11:16 a.m. Wykoff asks whether it is a generally accepted law-enforcement principle that the receiver’s [Massey’s] actions often escalate the event. Corbitt agrees.
11:10 a.m. Corbitt says there’s a misconception about what de-escalation means. It’s different in the law enforcement world compared to the public. Corbitt emphasizes that de-escalation isn’t just verbal communication
11:09 a.m. Corbitt says Grayson’s choosing to keep a line of sight on Massey was the right decision.
11:09 a.m. Wykoff explains that there were two conflicting, generally accepted tactics: keeping a line of sight and creating distance between you and the subject. Corbitt says you have to “Try to pick the one that’s best for you and your partner.”
11:05 a.m. Corbitt describes this as a perceived threat. If an officer loses sight of that threat, they don’t know what could happen next.
11:02 a.m. Corbitt says Grayson approaching Massey falls within the generally accepted principles and best practices, and that it’s not uncommon for an officer to get a line of sight of a subject.
10:59 a.m. Corbitt says, upon reviewing Sangamon County’s use-of-force policy, he believes it falls within the generally accepted principles and best practices. Corbitt says when examining the case, he didn’t think Grayson acted out of line based on the policy.
10:52 a.m. Corbitt has been declared an expert on use-of-force. Wykoff asks Corbitt about his report on the case.
10:49 a.m. Corbitt has experience testifying as a Use-of-Force expert in criminal trials.
10:45 a.m. Corbitt says the Georgia Public Safety Training Center follows generally accepted principles and best practices in law enforcement and that he managed the Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) unit.
10:41 a.m. Wykoff asks Corbitt about his experience at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center as a manager and trainer.
10:39 a.m. The third witness called by the defense is Coweta County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Glyn Corbitt. Corbitt owns a consulting and training company that consults on use-of-force cases.
10:37 a.m. Wykoff redirects and reiterates that Dep. Eccleston can still testify to Sean Grayson’s demeanor—no further questions from either side.
10:36 a.m. In Dep. Eccleston’s report mentions that this encounter and Grayson’s demeanor were recorded on Eccleston’s body cam. Rodgers emphasizes that Eccleston told Grayson to turn off his bodycam, and Eccleston turned his off. So Grayson’s demeanor wasn’t captured on camera.
10:34 a.m. Rodgers cross-examines. In Dep. Eccleston’s report, he advised Grayson not to speak to anyone. Rodgers says Eccleston said, “Don’t say a f—ing thing to anyone’ and that he told Grayson to turn off his body cam
10:32 a.m. When Grayson was in Dep. Eccleston’s squad car, his demeanor was ‘up-and-down.’ Dep. Eccleston shares that he knows Grayson quite well and that his demeanor was not how Grayson usually presents himself.
10:26 a.m. Wykoff asks Dep. Eccleston to share what he saw upon arriving at Massey’s house the morning of July 6th, 2024. Dep. Eccleston said Grayson appeared panicked. Dep. Eccleston took Grayson to his car. Grayson started sobbing in the car. Dep. Eccleston told Grayson to calm down.
10:24 a.m. The defense has called Sangamon County Deputy Jason Eccleston as their second witness.
10:20 a.m. Judge Cadagin and the jury have re-entered the courtroom.
10:07 a.m. Fultz and Milhiser both have no further questions for Grayson. We are now on a short break.
10:06 a.m. Grayson didn’t feel the need to write everything down in his report because it was all shown in the body cam footage. Fultz asks Grayson if he ever went to ISP after he filed his initial report to charge his story (alluding to Dep. Farley’s actions.) Grayson says no.
10:01 a.m. No further questions from Fultz. Milhiser approaches for questioning.
10:00 a.m. Grayson saw Massey grab the pot, raise it above her head, and throw the pot at him. Grayson said he only discharged his weapon when he saw Massey throw the pot at him.
9:59 a.m. Grayson said he also approached Massey to get a clear picture of what she was doing behind the cabinet. After Grayson said, “I’m going to shoot you in the f—ing face,” and Massey said, “Okay, I’m sorry,” Grayson felt he had gained compliance.
9:57 a.m. Grayson said he approached Massey because he was trying to secure Massey in handcuffs for aggravated assault on a police officer for holding the pot and making threats
9:55 a.m. Fultz asks why a taser was not an appropriate defense against the pot of water — Grayson said he had an older model taser, and Massey was wearing multiple layers of clothing, which could have made the taser ineffective. Grayson didn’t want to risk the taser not working.
9:51 a.m. Grayson says he was trained to use force to gain compliance. He says he matched Massey’s threat level by drawing his gun.
9:49 a.m. Grayson took Massey, saying, “I’ll rebuke you in the name of Jesus,” as a threat. Grayson stands up to demonstrate to the jury how Massey was holding the pot of water.
9:48 a.m. Grayson said Massey turned on the sink but didn’t use the water. Grayson and Dep. Farley started walking back away from Massey. Massey asked ‘Where are you going?’ and Grayson said ‘Away from your hot steaming pot of water.’
9:45 a.m. Grayson said he was concerned when Massey jumped up and went behind Dep. Farley and walked into the kitchen. Massey turned off the stove and picked up the pot. Grayson was concerned because he didn’t know what Massey was doing.
9:44 a.m. Grayson saw the pot on the stove turn red. He looked at Dep. Farley and said ‘Go check on her stove’ with the expectation that he’d just turn off the stove. Grayson says Dep. Farley was closest to the stove, as Grayson was positioned between Massey and the baseball bat.
9:41 a.m. Grayson asked Dep. Farley to search Massey’s house to ensure there were no other patrons in the household. Sean Grayson described Massey as ‘being cooperative,’ as he questioned her.
9:39 a.m. When Grayson stepped into Massey’s house, he noticed a baseball bat in the living room next to her bible. He said he just assumed she had the baseball bat to scare anyone off. Grayson did not realize there was water on the stove when he initially stepped into Massey’s house.
9:36 a.m. Sean Grayson says Massey kept saying she wanted help with something inside her house. Grayson said he’d come inside, but he needed her name, so he asked for her license. After running the car registration, Dep. Farley told Grayson the car was in Sonya Massey’s name.
9:34 a.m. Sean Grayson: “Her [Massey’s] behavior was pretty typical for people we deal with on Monday nights.”
9:31 a.m. Sean Grayson says he told Dep. Farley to tell dispatch to call Sonya Massey to try to contact her after she failed to answer the door. He said he was worried someone had made it inside her house.
9:30 a.m. Sean Grayson and Sonya Massey’s families stare right at Grayson as he testifies. The jury stares at him intently, occasionally taking notes.
9:29 a.m. Grayson explains the layout of Sonya Massey’s yard and how he and Dep. Farley split up searching the premises.
9:28 a.m. Grayson says he tried to turn on his body camera when he saw the car in Massey’s driveway. He said he didn’t double-check that it was on, though. Most on the night shift turn the lights off and mute their body cameras so as not to alert anyone.
9:26 a.m. Sean Grayson: “When we are doing something that is not civil, we have to have our body cameras on. When she [Massey] answered the door and I started questioning her about the car and the damage to the car, is when I should have turned my body camera on.”
9:22 a.m. Sean Grayson left the traffic stop and arrived at Massey’s residence at the same time as Dep. Farley. Grayson explains that Massey lived in the ‘Cabbage Patch’ area of Springfield, an unincorporated area on the East side of Springfield known for high crime.
9:20 a.m. On the morning of July 6, Grayson was working a traffic stop. He forgot his new computer system, so he wrote out a physical report. He received a call saying that a woman [Massey] had called 911 about someone outside her residence, but the call was disconnected.
9:16 a.m. Sean Grayson says he did not work with Deputy Farley on a regular basis. He’s only worked with him 5-6 times.
9:15 a.m. Grayson usually patrols North Town, everything north of Cook St in Springfield. On the morning of July 6, 2024, he was assigned to patrol South Town, South of Cook St, almost down to Chatham, IL.
9:13 a.m. Sean Grayson shares an average day as a deputy on the first patrol shift, 11 p.m. – 7:30 a.m. During the shift, a deputy can expect to receive calls concerning shootings, stabbings, bar fights, and domestics
9:09 a.m. The Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office sent Grayson to a 14-week training program with Macon County law enforcement. He also did two weeks of in-house training.
9:06 a.m. Fultz is now questioning Sean Grayson about his experience in policing.
9:05 a.m. The people have rested. Mr. Fultz has called Sean Grayson to the witness stand.
9:04 a.m. Judge Cadagin has entered the courtroom. The attorneys have given a timeline for the remainder of the trial. Judge Cadagin talks to Sean Grayson about his right to testify in the trial. Sean Grayson has decided to testify.
8:58 a.m. Malachi Massey, Sonya Massey’s son, has taken a seat in the gallery.
8:47 a.m. Sean Grayson’s family has entered the courtroom. They take their seats behind the Defense in the gallery. Donna Massey, Sonya’s mother, and James Wilburn, Sonya’s Father, are seated in the gallery behind the State.
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