OC judge charged with murdering wife confessed to killing in text, prosecutors say
Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ferguson allegedly texted his court clerk and bailiff after the murder to say he had shot his wife.
ANAHEIM HILLS, Calif. (KABC) -- An Orange County Superior Court judge has been charged with murder in connection with the fatal shooting of his wife at their Anaheim Hills home, followed by an alleged confession, prosecutors announced Friday.
According to the Orange County district attorney's office, Jeffrey Malcolm Ferguson texted his court clerk and bailiff after the murder to say he had shot his wife, Sheryl Ferguson.
A court filing says Ferguson texted: "I just lost it. I just shot my wife. I won't be in tomorrow. I will be in custody. I'm so sorry."
The shooting was reported shortly after 8 p.m. Aug. 3 at a residence in the 8500 block of East Canyon Vista Drive, authorities said.
Officers arrived to find Sheryl Ferguson, 65, suffering from at least one gunshot wound, police said. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Jeffrey Ferguson, 72, was taken into custody without incident. He has booked on $1 million bail and released.
During the investigation at the scene, police served a search warrant and recovered 47 weapons -- including rifles, shotguns, and handguns -- and more than 26,000 rounds of ammunition. A .22 rifle legally registered to Ferguson remains unaccounted for, according to the Orange County district attorney's office.
Prosecutors later filed one count of felony murder against Ferguson, with enhancements including personal discharge of a firearm causing great bodily injury and death, and personal use of a firearm, according to a criminal complaint.
The court document alleges Jeffrey Ferguson used a Glock .40 in the shooting and that he "threatened the victim earlier in the evening by making a hand gesture indicative of pointing a gun at her."
The document says their adult son called 911 and said his father had been drinking too much and shot his mom.
Jeffrey Ferguson also called 911 to vaguely report the shooting. When asked if he shot his wife, he said he didn't want to talk about it at that time and she needed paramedics.
When officers arrived, Ferguson smelled of alcohol and told them, "Oh man I can't believe I did this," according to the document.
Prosecutors want Ferguson to surrender his passport and wear an ankle monitor.
Ferguson's attorneys, Paul Meyer and John Barnett, issued a brief statement and declined to answer questions. "This is a tragedy for the entire Ferguson family. It was an accident and nothing more," they said.
Superior Court judge is an elected position in Orange County, with Ferguson winning reelection in March 2020. He has served in the role since 2015 and handles criminal cases in Fullerton.
He started his legal career in the Orange County district attorney's office in 1983 and went on to work narcotics cases, for which he won various awards. He served as president of the North Orange County Bar Association from 2012 to 2014
In 2017, Ferguson was admonished by the Commission on Judicial Performance 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.
ABC News and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
