An Orange County Superior Court judge said his son “will hate me forever” and should “punch me in the face” after the judge shot and killed his wife in their Anaheim Hills home, according to testimony at a hearing Thursday that ended with the judge being ordered to stand trial on a murder charge.
Judge Jeff Ferguson, 73, stands accused of killing his wife, 65-year-old Sheryl Ferguson, during an argument and in front of their younger son at their home in the 8500 block of East Canyon Vista Drive just past 8 p.m., Aug. 3.
Defense attorney T. Edward Welbourn argued there was insufficient evidence to show Ferguson intended to kill his wife, citing interviews with their son, Phillip, where he told a detective at least once that he thought the shooting may have been accidental.
Thursday’s preliminary hearing, where prosecutors lay out at least some of the evidence they have against a defendant, focused primarily on a trio of interviews between Anaheim Police Detective Michael Nguyen and the couple’s son, Phillip Ferguson, who was at the house when the shooting occurred. The detective’s testimony provided more details surrounding the shooting.
Prosecutors also called up three Anaheim police officers who testified to statements Ferguson made after he was placed in handcuffs that night.
Anaheim police officer Joshua Juntilla recalled Ferguson saying, “What did I do? My son will hate me forever. Can you have my son come over here and punch me in the face because I deserve it.”
Jeff Ferguson also asked multiple times if his wife was still alive, and he said he was “done for a while,” referring to going to prison, Juntilla testified.
Nguyen testified that Phillip Ferguson said he was walking toward a sliding back door to go to the backyard while his parents argued when he heard his mother say something to the effect of, ‘Why don’t you point a real gun at me?’ “
The son turned and saw his father, on the couch, with a gun in his right hand pointed toward his mother, who was in a chair between 3-4 feet away before the gun went off, Nguyen said.
“He said he had jumped over the couch after the shooting to get the gun away from his father,” Nguyen testified, later clarifying that the son believed his dad would harm himself with the weapon, rather than shoot his wife again or turn toward his son.
The son said Jeff Ferguson did not make any statements before the shot was fired, Nguyen testified.
Phillip Ferguson, after taking the gun, placed it next to his mother, who was face down on the carpet next to the chair. He called 911, flipped his mother over and began attempting CPR until police arrived, Nguyen testified. She was pronounced dead at the home.
During questioning from Welbourn, Nguyen testified that Phillip Ferguson said his father always holds firearms with two hands and characterized him as a “terrible shot.” Phillip Ferguson at least once told the detective he thought the shooting may have been accidental, because his father “never …read more
Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment
