California judge pulled a gun and shot his wife during an argument, prosecutor says
SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — A Southern California judge pulled a loaded gun from his ankle holster and fatally shot his wife during an argument while the couple was watching television, a prosecutor told jurors as the judge’s trial got underway Wednesday.
Orange County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ferguson, who is now 74 years old, is heard saying on police videos shown in court that he shot his wife, Sheryl Ferguson. His lawyer doesn’t dispute that Ferguson fired the gun but contends it was an accident.
Ferguson had been drinking on Aug. 3, 2023, when he argued with his wife about finances during dinner at a local restaurant and later while watching “Breaking Bad” at home with their adult son, prosecutor Seton Hunt said. At one point in the evening, Ferguson made a gun hand gesture toward her, and she later chided him to point a real one at her, Hunt said.
Ferguson proceeded to do so and pulled the trigger, Hunt said. He was later taken into custody, and in comments captured on a police video recording, pleaded for a jury to convict him.
“I killed her,” Ferguson is heard saying. “I did it.”
Wednesday’s statements came at the beginning of Ferguson’s trial on a murder charge in a case that has roiled the legal community in Orange County. To avoid a conflict of interest, a Los Angeles County judge is presiding over the case before jurors in Santa Ana — not far from where Ferguson previously heard cases in his courtroom.
Ferguson — who used to be a criminal prosecutor — sat in court in the defendant’s chair and wore a gray suit jacket and glasses. He has pleaded not guilty. His lawyer, Cameron J. Talley, reserved his opening statement for later in the trial, but he previously said the shooting was accidental. He said his client planned to testify.
After the shooting, Ferguson and his son both called 911, and Ferguson texted his court clerk and bailiff saying: “I just lost it. I just shot my wife. I won’t be in tomorrow. I will be in custody. I’m so sorry,” according to a copy of a text message Hunt showed jurors.
Video footage from a police body-worn camera shows Ferguson outside the home, in handcuffs, swearing and asking if his wife was still alive. He said his son and everyone would hate him, and that he never imagined he would wind up like the violent gang members he prosecuted when he worked in the district attorney’s office, according to the footage.
“Never in my wildest dreams I thought I’d be sitting here in handcuffs,” Ferguson is heard saying.
Authorities have said they later found 47 weapons, including the gun, and more than 26,000 rounds of ammunition at Ferguson’s home. Hunt said Ferguson had ample experience and training in operating firearms.
Ferguson’s son Phillip testified that his father taught him firearm safety, including to always point a weapon in a safe direction. He said after the shooting he jumped over a couch and forced his father to hand over the gun. He said he then called 911 and attended to his mother, performing CPR when she was no longer breathing.
“As I was jumping over the couch, I heard her say, ‘He shot me,’” Phillip said.
Ferguson was released on $1 million bail in 2023 but re-arrested last year after Judge Eleanor J. Hunter determined he had lied about drinking alcohol in violation of his bail conditions. Ferguson was later released on $2 million bail.
Ferguson has been an elected judge in Orange County for a decade, but he is not currently hearing cases. Under the state’s constitution, a judge who faces a felony charge can continue to draw a salary but can’t hear cases.
He began his legal career in the district attorney’s office in 1983 and went on to work narcotics cases, for which he won various awards, and was president of the North Orange County Bar Association from 2012 to 2014.
Ferguson was admonished by the Commission on Judicial Performance in 2017 for posting a statement on Facebook about a judicial candidate “with knowing or reckless disregard for the truth of the statement,” and for being Facebook friends with attorneys appearing before him in court, according to a copy of the agency’s findings.
On his Facebook page, Ferguson said he grew up in a military family and traveled throughout Asia as a child. He attended college and law school in California and married his wife in 1996.
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This story has been edited to correct the spelling of the first name of Judge Jeffrey Ferguson’s wife. Her name was Sheryl, not Cheryl.
By AMY TAXIN
Associated Press
