Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell 
By Melissa Noel ·Updated July 31, 2024
Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell said that his department “failed the community” in the July 6 fatal shooting of Sonya Massey, a Black woman who called 911 for help at her Illinois home.
“(Sonya Massey) called for help and we failed,” Campbell told a community meeting at a Springfield church on Monday regarding the July 6 shooting. “We did not do our jobs. We failed Sonya. We failed Sonya’s family and friends. We failed the community,” Campbell said according to CBS News.
At the event, attended by officials from the U.S. Department of Justice, the mayor of Springfield, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Campbell sought forgiveness for the department’s actions the night Massey was killed by Deputy Sean Grayson. “I asked for forgiveness,” Campbell said. “We will never know why he did what he did.”
Massey’s family continues to seek answers following the release of bodycam footage one week ago. Grayson was one of two deputies who responded to Massey’s 911 call about a prowler. The footage showed Grayson shooting Massey in the head as she crouched in her kitchen after ordering her to drop a pot of water from the stove.
Grayson now faces charges of first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, and official misconduct following the fatal shooting. He has entered a plea of not guilty.
When the incident occurred, Grayson was working for his sixth police department since 2020. A speaker at the meeting expressed disbelief, saying, “I don’t know how you hired a volcano.”
Grayson’s career has been marked by controversy. He was discharged from the U.S. Army for misconduct, and two years before the shooting, he received a reprimand for falsifying police reports while with the Logan County Sheriff’s Department. During his tenure there, from May 2022 to April 2023, he ignored orders to terminate a high-speed chase, reaching speeds of 110 mph and ultimately hitting a deer after turning off his lights and siren.
Grayson was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, and official misconduct. He has pleaded not guilty. Grayson was working for his sixth police department since 2020 when he shot Massey. “I don’t know how you hired a volcano,” a speaker at the meeting remarked.
The union representing Sangamon County Sheriff’s deputies is advocating for Grayson’s reinstatement and reimbursement for lost wages. Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher, when asked about the union’s call, stated, “So I am a pro-union mayor, first of all, but that union I would not agree with—and I would fight them to the finish.”
TOPICS: Illinois Police Brutality Sonya Massey
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