A California judge on trial for murdering his wife told cops he shot her during an argument about money while drinking and watching the hit crime series “Breaking Bad,” prosecutors said.
Orange County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ferguson, 74, had been drinking and arguing with Sheryl Ferguson while out to dinner and later inside the family home on Aug. 3, 2023, when his wife dared him to point a gun at her — which he did, prosecutors told jurors on Wednesday.
The judge pulled a loaded gun from his ankle holster and fatally shot his wife while their adult son looked on, prosecutor Seton Hunt said during opening testimony.
“I killed her,” Ferguson is heard saying on police bodycam video. “I did it.”
He then sent a cryptic message to his court clerk and bailiff, Hunt told jurors.
“I just lost it,” he wrote. “I just shot my wife. I won’t be in tomorrow. I will be in custody. I’m so sorry.”
Ferguson’s lawyer has not denied that his client shot and killed his wife, but claims it was an accident.
Defense attorney Cameron Talley said during opening statements that Ferguson made a gun gesture with his hand during the couple’s dispute over money — with his wife teasing him to point a real gun.
The judge, who had 47 weapons in the home and 26,000 rounds of ammunition, then pointed a real gun at his wife and pulled the trigger, which he claims was by accident.
Both Ferguson and his adult son, Phillip, called 911. The son then took the gun away from his father and jumped over the couch to perform CPR on his mom, who was not breathing.
The bodycam footage shown to the jury in court shows the judge being led out of his Orange County home in handcuffs before he was charged.
“Never in my wildest dreams I thought I’d be sitting here in handcuffs,” he is heard saying as cops askied if his wife was still alive.
The trial is being held in nearby Santa Ana to avoid a potential conflict of interest.
Ferguson, a former Orange County prosecutor, was released on $1 million bail after his arrest, but was later jailed for drinking, a violation of his bail conditions.
He was later released on $2 million bail and is expected to testify at his trial.
With Post wires
