Los Angeles: A judge from Southern California who is accused of killing his wife during a heated argument while intoxicated entered a not guilty plea on Tuesday; according to his attorney, the incident was a "accidental shooting."
Judge Jeffrey Ferguson of Orange County Superior Court, who showed up in court wearing a suit and tie, was ordered by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Ricardo Ocampo to give up his passport, consent to searches, and wear GPS and blood alcohol monitoring devices as part of new bail conditions requested by the prosecution. Ferguson, who is out on $1 million bail, is also prohibited from owning a gun, drinking alcohol, or going to places like bars and liquor stores.
The longtime judge and former prosecutor was confident that a jury would concur with him that no crime was committed, according to Ferguson's attorneys, who told reporters after the hearing.
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"This was an unintentional, accidental shooting and not a crime," said lawyer Paul Meyer.
Because Ferguson has been a judge hearing criminal cases in a courtroom about 25 miles (40 kilometres) to the southeast in Orange County, the hearing was held in Los Angeles. Ferguson's next hearing was scheduled for October 30.
Police discovered the 72-year-old's wife, Sheryl Ferguson, shot to death at his home in the affluent Anaheim Hills neighbourhood on August 3, leading to his arrest. In court documents, the prosecution claimed that the judge shot the woman in the chest after pulling a gun from an ankle holster while they were having an argument. According to the documents, the couple's adult son and Ferguson called 911, and Ferguson texted his court clerk and bailiff to say that he had shot his wife.
I just lost it, he texted. My wife was just shot. Tomorrow, I won't be there. I'll be detained. I'm so sorry," the filing states.
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Authorities discovered 47 weapons at Ferguson's home, including the pistol used in the shooting, along with more than 26,000 rounds of ammunition, according to prosecutors, who claimed the new bail conditions protect public safety and ensure he doesn't flee. Despite claims to the contrary, a rifle with his name on the registration is still missing.
Ferguson was accused of one count of murder as well as enhancements involving weapons. After the hearing on Tuesday, Sheryl Ferguson's brother, Larry Rosen, told reporters it was "hell" when Ferguson looked at him in the courtroom.
Rosen gushed, "My sister was a wonderful person, very caring, very selfless." "The family is in complete shock,"
Rosen declined to respond to questions about Ferguson's attorneys' assertions that the shooting was unintentional and instead deferred to the police and prosecutors conducting the investigation.
Since Rosen was still a minor when their mother passed away, he claimed that his sister helped take care of him. She participated in Boy Scouts and other activities with her now-adult son, he added, and she was an active member of her community. According to authorities, the son who allegedly dialled 911 after the shooting is now the family's main concern, according to Rosen.
"For me, it's a tragedy. Rosen said, "I can't even imagine what he's going through right now.
The Southern California legal community was shocked by the arrest, and authorities are debating how to proceed with the case. Before charging him last week, the district attorney's office in Orange County—a collection of cities that are home to more than 3 million people—asked state officials for their opinion on whether there was a conflict.
Since 2015, Ferguson has served as a judge. He began practising law in 1983 at the district attorney's office for Orange County, where he later worked on drug cases for which he received numerous honours. From 2012 to 2014, he presided over the North Orange County Bar Association.
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According to a copy of the Commission on Judicial Performance's findings, Ferguson was reprimanded in 2017 for posting a comment about a judicial candidate on Facebook "with knowing or reckless disregard for the truth of the statement" and for being Facebook friends with attorneys who represented him in court.
Ferguson claimed on his Facebook page to have been raised in a military family and to have grown up travelling extensively in Asia. He then continued on to California for college and law school. In 1996, he and his wife got hitched.