By Nathaniel "Beltway" Steele
Sean Grayson is dead. The former Sangamon County, Illinois, sheriff's deputy, 32, died while serving a 20-year sentence for the second-degree murder of Sonya Massey, his attorney confirmed Sunday.
A jury convicted Grayson last October in the killing of Massey, a Black woman who was shot in her own home in July 2024 after she called 911 to report a prowler. The case drew national attention after body-camera footage showed Grayson firing at Massey as she stood unarmed in her kitchen, apologizing after she had put down a pot of water she'd been holding. The footage became a flashpoint in the ongoing national argument over police use of force.
Grayson had pleaded not guilty, arguing he feared for his safety. The jury disagreed, convicting him of second-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct. He was sentenced to 20 years.
No cause of death has been made public, and it is not yet clear whether state or federal authorities plan to investigate the circumstances of his death behind bars. The American Times has not independently confirmed further details and will update this report as authorities release them.
Massey's family had pushed for accountability not just for Grayson but for the department that hired him despite a record that included prior misconduct complaints and multiple job changes across several police agencies — a pattern good-government advocates have cited as an example of the so-called "wandering officer" problem that lets troubled cops resurface elsewhere with a badge.
— Compiled from reporting by ABC News, NBC News and CBS News.
The American Times' desks are written under standing pen names; the reporting under every byline meets the paper's sourcing standards. See "About Our Bylines."