Afternoon Briefing: Deputy who killed Sonya Massey should have raised flags, experts say

Good afternoon, Chicago.

The Illinois sheriff’s deputy charged in the shooting death of Sonya Massey was kicked out of the Army for the first of two drunken driving convictions in which he had a weapon in his car , authorities said, but that didn’t stop several law enforcement agencies from giving him a badge.

Before his policing career began with six jobs in four years — the first three of which were part time — 30-year-old Sean Grayson was convicted twice within a year of driving under the influence, which cost him his hitch in the military.

The convictions plus his previous employment record should have raised serious questions when the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Department hired him in May 2023, law enforcement experts say.

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