An Orange County Superior Court judge was sentenced to 35 years to life in prison after killing his wife two years ago, a judge ruled Wednesday.
The sentencing means 74-year-old Jeffrey Ferguson will spend the rest of his life in custody after he was convicted on second-degree murder charges in April for the fatal shooting of his wife, Sheryl Ferguson, 65, on Aug. 3, 2023, in their Anaheim Hills home. He immediately admitted to police that he’d shot her, but claimed it was an accidental misfire.
Prosecutors disagreed, claiming that he picked up a gun and shot her after a night of drinking and arguing.
A clearly emotional and anxious Ferguson reacted in a Santa Ana courtroom Wednesday as Judge Eleanor J. Hunter read the sentencing. He broke down in tears at one point during the hearing.
The trial that led to his conviction wasn’t the first time he faced a jury in the aftermath of the incident – a jury previously deadlocked at 11-1 in early March, leading to a mistrial.
Jeffrey claims he was retrieving his gun from an ankle holster to place on a coffee table but fumbled it due to a shoulder injury, leading to an accidental discharge. He admitted to drinking and arguing with Sheryl earlier that evening.
According to the prosecution’s argument, Jeffrey drunkenly pointed the gun at Sheryl in a fit of rage before pulling the trigger.
“You have been presented with evidence — credible evidence — he took out the gun, he was angry,” Senior Deputy District Attorney Seton Hunt told jurors in March. “He took the gun out, pointed at her and killed her.”
District Attorney Todd Spitzer said Ferguson later admitted to being an alcoholic and consumed alcohol even when working as a judge.
Sheryl Ferguson’s brother, Larry Rosen, said during Wednesday’s hearing that despite the conviction, he believed that Jeffrey should have been tried on a lesser charge than second-degree murder.
“I really do truly believe that my sister does believe, even though she’s not physically here, I do believe that she recognizes that this was an accident,” he said. “I personally have forgiven Jeff.”
Spitzer shared a statement on the sentencing on Wednesday.
“This was not an accident; it was murder. Lady Justice is blindfolded, impervious of any attempts to sway her judgement in favor of someone who once held the position of immense trust as a judge and held the fate of the accused in his own hands,” the statement said. “While we mourn the tragic loss of Sheryl at the hands of her own husband, we also grieve the tarnish this crime brought to the judiciary and to the legal profession as a whole by someone who went from wielding the sword of justice to committing the ultimate act of evil.”