Years before sheriff’s deputy Sean Grayson gunned down Sonya Massey in her own home, he had been discharged from the Army for serious misconduct and had a history of driving under the influence, records show.
He also failed to obey a command while working for another sheriff’s office in Illinois and was told he needed “high stress decision making classes,” the agency’s documents reveal.
Grayson, who was a Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy before he was fired and charged with murder, responded to a report of a prowler at Massey’s home July 6. Bodycam footage from another deputy showed Massey saying she rebuked Grayson, and Grayson responded by threatening the 36-year-old. The exchange ended with Grayson shooting Massey and failing to render aid.
He had to approach her to shoot her. Sonya ducked behind a counter when the officer pulled his gun on her and said “I will fucking shoot you in your fucking face”. Why would someone approach a threat? He didn’t see her as a threat, he saw an excuse to kill her.
It’s always shoot to kill, as it should be. A gun is a lethal weapon. It’s only use is to kill. Police have less-than-lethal tools if their intent isn’t to kill.
I come away with this thought often in situations like this.
Too many cops seem to look for how much force they get to use instead of how much they need to use.