Criminal Justice
Judge who shot wife, called in absence is convicted in retrial; his advice to son is ‘beyond sad,’ DA says
Orange County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ferguson appears during a hearing at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center on Aug. 15, 2023, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Damian Dovarganes/The Associated Press)
A California judge who fatally shot his wife and admitted the shooting was convicted of second-degree murder Tuesday in a retrial.
Judge Jeffrey Ferguson of the Orange County Superior Court in California is scheduled for sentencing June 13 in the death of his wife, Sheryl Ferguson, report Law360, Bloomberg Law, NBC Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Times and USA Today.
Jurors in Santa Ana, California, found that Ferguson qualified for two gun sentencing enhancements, which means that he faces a sentence of 40 years to life in prison, the articles report.
Ferguson, 74, had maintained that the August 2023 shooting was accidental. His lawyer had argued that pain from a shoulder injury caused Ferguson to fumble the gun that he was trying to place on a coffee table, leading him to accidentally pull the trigger.
Defense lawyer Cameron Talley said an appeal is planned.
Ferguson had been drinking on the day of the shooting. He and his wife were watching the AMC TV show Breaking Bad and arguing about money before she was killed. Afterward, he texted court personnel, writing, “I just lost it. I just shot my wife. I won’t be in tomorrow. I will be in custody. I’m so sorry.”
Ferguson also muttered to himself in an interrogation room. “I killed her. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, convict my ass. I did it,” he said in comments recorded on video. “My pension’s gone.”
Ferguson’s son, Phillip Ferguson, testified that he tackled his father after the shooting, according to the Los Angeles Times.
“I made sure he let go of the gun before I let him get up,” he said.
Ferguson and Phillip Ferguson hugged after the verdict.
During closing arguments, Orange County Deputy District Attorney Seton Hunt had told jurors, “The fact that Phillip forgives [and] loves his father … that’s not a defense.”
After the verdict, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said during a press conference Ferguson had told his son to be strong while they hugged, according to Bloomberg Law.
“It was so ironic to me,” Spitzer said. “It was so Shakespearean. It was so beyond sad.”
A mistrial was declared in the first trial in March after jurors split 11-1.
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