AN ORANGE COUNTY judge was convicted on Tuesday of the 2023 murder of his wife (Shutterstock).
Orange County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ferguson was convicted on Tuesday of second degree murder in the fatal shooting of his wife, Sheryl, in 2023.
Ferguson was found guilty in Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana by the jury of one felony count of murder and one felony enhancement of personal use of a firearm and one felony enhancement of discharge of a firearm causing great bodily injury and death. He could be sentenced to a maximum term of 40 years to life.
In August 2023 he and his were sitting watching television in their home in Anaheim Hills when the pistol in his hand discharged, fatally wounding her.
According to the Orange County District Attorney’s office, Ferguson went outside and sent a text to his court bailiff and clerk reading, “I just lost it. I just shot my wife. I won’t be in tomorrow. I will be in custody. I’m so sorry.”
His defense attorney argued that the judge was seeking to place the gun on a table when he fumbled it and the weapon discharged accidentally.
Police searching the house recovered 48 weapons – rifles, shotguns and handguns, along with over 26,000 rounds of ammunition.
