LOS ANGELES — Jurors convicted a Southern California decide of second-degree homicide on Tuesday for fatally capturing his spouse whereas the couple argued and watched tv at residence.
Orange County Superior Courtroom Choose Jeffrey Ferguson, 74, was on trial for the 2023 demise of his spouse Sheryl, 65, of their Anaheim Hills residence.
Ferguson took the stand in his personal protection, admitting to capturing his spouse however saying it was an accident.
Jurors reached their determination Tuesday afternoon, a day after deliberations started.
After the decision was learn in courtroom, Ferguson was given a second to hug his son earlier than he was handcuffed and brought into custody.
He was additionally discovered responsible of a felony gun enhancement and faces a most jail time period of 40 years to life when he’s sentenced June 13.
Ferguson’s legal professional Cameron Talley mentioned the protection plans to attraction.
“I respect the jury’s verdict,” Talley mentioned. “At the same time, we all know that juries don’t always get it right … I still believe in Jeff.”
The decision comes after a earlier jury deadlocked in March and Los Angeles Superior Courtroom Choose Eleanor J. Hunter declared a mistrial. Hunter has overseen the case to keep away from a battle of curiosity with the Superior Courtroom in Orange County, the place Ferguson presided over felony circumstances till the capturing.
The case had roiled the authorized group within the county, which is residence to three million individuals between Los Angeles and San Diego. Many have identified or labored with Ferguson for many years, together with Orange County District Legal professional Todd Spitzer.
“There are no winners here,” Spitzer mentioned throughout a information convention after the decision. “Justice was achieved, but I’m very sad for the Ferguson family.”
Prosecutors mentioned Ferguson had been consuming earlier than he made a gun-like hand gesture towards his spouse of 27 years throughout an argument about household funds that they had throughout dinner at a Mexican restaurant on Aug. 3, 2023.
Prosecutors mentioned the argument continued at residence whereas the couple was watching “Breaking Bad” on TV with their grownup son, and Sheryl Ferguson chided her husband to level an actual gun at her. He did, then pulled the set off, prosecutors mentioned.
Ferguson testified that he was eradicating the gun from his ankle holster to put it on a desk, and fumbled it, and it discharged.
Instantly after the capturing, Ferguson and his son each referred to as 911, and Ferguson texted his courtroom clerk and bailiff saying, “I just lost it. I just shot my wife. I won’t be in tomorrow. I will be in custody. I’m so sorry,” in line with a duplicate of a textual content message proven to jurors. His son Phillip testified to tackling his father to wrestle the gun away after the capturing and performing CPR on his mom.
Ferguson spoke with police outdoors his residence and once more as soon as he was in custody, and was seen on video sobbing and saying his son and everybody would hate him. Within the video, he mentioned he killed his spouse and pleaded for a jury to convict him.
Authorities mentioned they discovered 47 weapons, together with the gun used within the capturing, and greater than 26,000 rounds of ammunition on the residence, and mentioned Ferguson had ample expertise and coaching in firearms.
“This was not an accident. Ferguson was trained to never point a gun at anything he didn’t intend to destroy,” Spitzer mentioned in an announcement concerning the verdict.
Ferguson was a long-time prosecutor who grew to become a decide in 2015. He started his authorized profession within the district legal professional’s workplace in 1983 and went on to work on narcotics circumstances, profitable numerous awards.
Ferguson had been out on $2 million bail however was not presiding in courtroom because the state structure bars a decide going through a felony cost from listening to circumstances.
