An Orange County Superior Court docket choose accused of murdering his spouse with a gun pulled from an ankle holster had obtained a allow to hold a hid weapon out of a want to guard her and others from hurt, paperwork present.
Decide Jeffrey Ferguson wrote in his renewal utility for a hid carry allow that he wanted it due to his job on the bench and as a former prosecutor.
“I want to renew my CCW (Hid Carry Weapon allow) for self-protection and safety of my fast household attributable to my present, ongoing and previous service in Orange County,” wrote Ferguson in his utility, signed in March 2021 and obtained by the Southern California Information Group.
Ferguson first obtained a allow to hold a gun in 1994, whereas a deputy district legal professional who incessantly argued to ship parolees again to jail.
His hid weapon allow was revoked after his Aug. 3 arrest.
Court docket paperwork allege that the choose shot his spouse, Sheryl Ferguson, by the chest with a .40-caliber Glock that he pulled from his ankle holster throughout an argument in entrance of their 22-year-old son the evening of his arrest.
Seven hours after the taking pictures on the couple’s Anaheim Hills residence, a blood pattern taken from Ferguson confirmed he had a blood-alcohol stage of 0.06 p.c, based on prosecutors. The authorized stage by which an individual is taken into account too intoxicated to drive is 0.08 p.c.
Based mostly on that blood pattern, it seems Ferguson violated the situations of his gun allow by consuming an alcoholic beverage whereas carrying a weapon. The hid carry allow allowed Ferguson to hold solely the next listed weapons: a Glock .40 caliber, a Glock 9 mm, a Kahr .40 caliber, and a Springfield .40 caliber.
Attorneys representing Ferguson have mentioned the taking pictures was an accident. The protection attorneys have described an “unintentional discharge” of a firearm and have denied that Ferguson meant to kill his spouse.
Ferguson remained free on a $1 million bail as he awaits trial. Regardless of his standing as an elected choose, Ferguson is just not anticipated to preside over any circumstances, and even his personal courtroom, whereas his legal case stays lively.
Ferguson is now not assigned to his former courtroom on the Fullerton courthouse or another Orange County Superior Court docket facility, courtroom officers mentioned.
All circumstances that have been assigned to him have been transferred to different judges, courtroom officers mentioned, and no new circumstances are being assigned to him. The county’s presiding choose of the courtroom — or her designees similar to supervising judges — have the authority to find out the assignments and case masses for Ferguson and different judges.
Court docket officers additionally confirmed that Ferguson now not has any employees — similar to a clerk or a bailiff — assigned to him.
The employment standing of different courtroom staffers has not been impacted, officers mentioned. It’s not uncommon for courtroom employees to carry out different jobs when judges they’re assigned to are unavailable or unable to carry out their duties.
Requested if since his arrest there had been a change in Ferguson’s standing as a sitting, lively Orange County Superior Court docket choose, courtroom officers pointed to a piece of the California Structure that states “a choose is disqualified from performing as a choose, with out lack of wage,” whereas there’s a pending “indictment or an info charging the choose in the US with crime punishable as a felony underneath California or federal legislation.”
Ferguson earlier this month was charged in a legal criticism with homicide and has pleaded not responsible.
The homicide case in opposition to Ferguson has been assigned to judges in Los Angeles County to keep away from colleagues within the Orange County Superior Court docket system having to preside over hearings involving one among their very own.
The Orange County District Legal professional’s Workplace, nevertheless, has opted to deal with Ferguson’s prosecution, after the California Legal professional Common’s Workplace decided that native prosecutors didn’t have a battle of curiosity. Ferguson was a longtime prosecutor with the Orange County District Legal professional’s Workplace earlier than turning into an elected choose in 2015.
Court docket staffers previously assigned to Ferguson might additionally discover themselves concerned as witnesses in his prosecution In accordance with prosecutors, Ferguson, after allegedly taking pictures his spouse, texted his bailiff and clerk: “I simply misplaced it. I simply shot my spouse. I gained’t be in tomorrow. I will probably be in custody. I’m so sorry.”
