ANAHEIM HILLS, CA – On Friday, August 4th, local authorities announced that an Orange County Superior Court judge has been arrested in connection to the fatal shooting of his wife.
According to reports, the judge, identified as 72-year-old Jeffrey Ferguson, has been taken into custody on suspicion of murder. In a press release, the Anaheim Police Department (APD) stated that just after 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 3rd, dispatchers received reports of a shooting that occurred at a residence on the 8500 block of E. Canyon Vista Dr.
Responding officers confirmed that the victim, identified as 65-year-old Sheryl Ferguson, was in the home and was suffering from at least one gunshot wound. Sheryl was pronounced dead at the scene.
Property records indicate that the judge and his wife are the current residents of the home. According to the press release from APD, officers contacted Jeffrey Ferguson, who was also at the residence, and arrested him without incident.
The Superior Court judge was booked into APD’s Detention Center and is being held on a $1 million bail. As of this writing, APD stated that they are not disclosing additional details due to the active investigation.
According to Fox11, some of the neighbors, who did not wish to be identified, said that at one point, they heard officers on the loudspeaker, telling Ferguson to come out and surrender.
KTLA reported that the couple’s son, who is in his 20's, was home at the time of the shooting. He was questioned by police, but no further information has been released regarding him.
Orange County Superior Court officials also could not provide additional information, stating that the incident is still under investigation. In a separate statement, through the court, Orange County Superior Court Presiding Judge Maria Hernandez, said: “Our thoughts go to the family. We all pray for their comfort during this trying time. Although no case has been filed with our Court, when appropriate we will take all necessary steps to ensure full compliance with our legal and ethical obligations.”
The Los Angeles Times provided additional information about Ferguson, who has reportedly served as an Orange County Superior Court judge since 2015. Prior to that role, Ferguson spent more than thirty years with the Orange County district attorney’s office.
Ferguson also served as the president of the North Orange County Bar Association from 2012 to 2014. According to his biography on their website, Ferguson began his legal career back in 1983.
A decade after starting his career, he was promoted to Senior Deputy District attorney and was posted to the Major Narcotics Enforcement Team. He was also named prosecutor of the year four times by the Orange County Narcotics Officers Association.
The New York Post reported that as a judge, Ferguson was reprimanded back in 2017 by the state Commission on Judicial Performance for inappropriate actions on social media.
At the time, Ferguson was backing Orange County Superior Court Judge Scott Steiner, who was running for re-election. Steiner was reportedly censured in 2014 for allegedly having sex with two women in his chambers.
During the heated election, Steiner’s opponent, Karen Schatzle posted a comment on a Facebook page of the North Orange County Bar Association, saying, “Scott Steiner uses his office for sex and yet so many aren’t concerned, crazy politics!”
And in response, Ferguson went on his Facebook and wrote, “Karen Schatzle has sex with defense lawyer while she is DA on his cases and nobody cares. Interesting politics."
The Commission on Judicial Performance, which investigates judicial misconduct, ruled that Ferguson’s comment violated ethics rules and that he “acted [with] reckless disregard for the truth."
According to reports, the judge, identified as 72-year-old Jeffrey Ferguson, has been taken into custody on suspicion of murder. In a press release, the Anaheim Police Department (APD) stated that just after 8:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 3rd, dispatchers received reports of a shooting that occurred at a residence on the 8500 block of E. Canyon Vista Dr.
Responding officers confirmed that the victim, identified as 65-year-old Sheryl Ferguson, was in the home and was suffering from at least one gunshot wound. Sheryl was pronounced dead at the scene.
Property records indicate that the judge and his wife are the current residents of the home. According to the press release from APD, officers contacted Jeffrey Ferguson, who was also at the residence, and arrested him without incident.
The Superior Court judge was booked into APD’s Detention Center and is being held on a $1 million bail. As of this writing, APD stated that they are not disclosing additional details due to the active investigation.
According to Fox11, some of the neighbors, who did not wish to be identified, said that at one point, they heard officers on the loudspeaker, telling Ferguson to come out and surrender.
KTLA reported that the couple’s son, who is in his 20's, was home at the time of the shooting. He was questioned by police, but no further information has been released regarding him.
Orange County Superior Court officials also could not provide additional information, stating that the incident is still under investigation. In a separate statement, through the court, Orange County Superior Court Presiding Judge Maria Hernandez, said: “Our thoughts go to the family. We all pray for their comfort during this trying time. Although no case has been filed with our Court, when appropriate we will take all necessary steps to ensure full compliance with our legal and ethical obligations.”
The Los Angeles Times provided additional information about Ferguson, who has reportedly served as an Orange County Superior Court judge since 2015. Prior to that role, Ferguson spent more than thirty years with the Orange County district attorney’s office.
Ferguson also served as the president of the North Orange County Bar Association from 2012 to 2014. According to his biography on their website, Ferguson began his legal career back in 1983.
A decade after starting his career, he was promoted to Senior Deputy District attorney and was posted to the Major Narcotics Enforcement Team. He was also named prosecutor of the year four times by the Orange County Narcotics Officers Association.
The New York Post reported that as a judge, Ferguson was reprimanded back in 2017 by the state Commission on Judicial Performance for inappropriate actions on social media.
At the time, Ferguson was backing Orange County Superior Court Judge Scott Steiner, who was running for re-election. Steiner was reportedly censured in 2014 for allegedly having sex with two women in his chambers.
During the heated election, Steiner’s opponent, Karen Schatzle posted a comment on a Facebook page of the North Orange County Bar Association, saying, “Scott Steiner uses his office for sex and yet so many aren’t concerned, crazy politics!”
And in response, Ferguson went on his Facebook and wrote, “Karen Schatzle has sex with defense lawyer while she is DA on his cases and nobody cares. Interesting politics."
The Commission on Judicial Performance, which investigates judicial misconduct, ruled that Ferguson’s comment violated ethics rules and that he “acted [with] reckless disregard for the truth."
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