A Southern California judge charged with killing his wife during an argument while he was drunk pleaded not guilty Tuesday, and his lawyer says it was an "accidental shooting."
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Ricardo Ocampo ordered Orange County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ferguson, who appeared in court in a suit and tie, to surrender his passport, submit to searches, and wear monitoring devices for blood alcohol content and GPS as part of new bail conditions sought by prosecutors. Ferguson, who is free on US$1 million bail, also is barred from possessing firearms and alcohol and frequenting places such as bars and liquor stores.
After the hearing, Ferguson's lawyers told reporters the long-time judge and former prosecutor was confident a jury would agree with him that no crime was committed.
"This was an unintentional, accidental shooting and not a crime," attorney Paul Meyer said.
The hearing was held in Los Angeles because Ferguson has been a judge hearing criminal cases in a courtroom about 25 miles (40 kilometres) to the southeast in Orange County. The next hearing in Ferguson's case was set for Oct. 30.
The 72-year-old was arrested on Aug. 3 at his home in the upscale neighbourhood of Anaheim Hills after police found his wife, Sheryl Ferguson, shot to death. Prosecutors said in court filings that the couple had been arguing and the judge was drinking when he pulled a pistol from an ankle holster and shot her in the chest. The couple's adult son and Ferguson called 911, and Ferguson texted his court clerk and bailiff to say he had shot his wife, according to the filings.
He texted: "I just lost it. I just shot my wife. I won't be in tomorrow. I will be in custody. I'm so sorry," according to the filing.
Prosecutors argued the new bail conditions protect public safety and ensure Ferguson doesn't flee after authorities found 47 weapons, including the pistol used in the shooting, and more than 26,000 rounds of ammunition at his home. They say the weapons are legally owned but a rifle registered in his name is still missing.
The arrest shocked the Southern California legal community and officials have been grappling with how the case should be handled. The district attorney's office in Orange County -- a cluster of cities that are collectively home to more than 3 million people -- asked state officials to weigh in on whether there was a conflict before charging him last week.
Ferguson has been a judge since 2015. He started his legal career in the Orange County district attorney's office in 1983 and went on to work narcotics cases, for which he won various awards. He served as president of the North Orange County Bar Association from 2012 to 2014.
In 2017, Ferguson was admonished by the Commission on Judicial Performance for posting a statement on Facebook about a judicial candidate "with knowing or reckless disregard for the truth of the statement," and for being Facebook friends with attorneys appearing before him in court, according to a copy of the agency's findings.
Ferguson said on his Facebook page that he grew up in a military family and travelled throughout Asia as a child. He went on to attend college and law school in California. He and his wife were married in 1996.
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Police say they have wrapped up their on-scene investigation into a deadly boat crash in eastern Ontario as details of the incident begin to emerge.
Charlie Colin, bassist and founding member of the American pop-rock band Train, best known for their early-aughts hits like 'Drops of Jupiter' and 'Meet Virginia,' has died. He was 58.
WestJet Airlines plans to launch a new cheaper fare category that would be available to travellers willing to fly without a carry-on bag.
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Britain's fractious politicians shared a rare moment of unity on Wednesday, when a Conservative lawmaker returned to work six months after sepsis put him in a coma and forced the amputation of his hands and feet.
A stage collapsed at a Mexican election campaign rally on Wednesday, killing nine people and injuring dozens as high winds tore apart the large, concert-style structure, scattering politicians and attendees.
A new survey found a majority of Canadian respondents plan to stay within the country on their next trip amidst high costs of living.
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Canada and the United States are suspending all fishing for Canadian-origin Yukon River chinook salmon for seven years in an attempt to protect the dwindling species.
A stage collapsed at a Mexican election campaign rally on Wednesday, killing nine people and injuring dozens as high winds tore apart the large, concert-style structure, scattering politicians and attendees.
Many of the more seriously injured people who were on the Singapore Airlines flight that hit severe turbulence need operations on their spines, a Bangkok hospital said Thursday.
A group representing the families of hostages held in Gaza has released new video footage showing Hamas' capture of five female Israeli soldiers near the Gaza border on Oct. 7.
A deadly tornado that wreaked havoc in the small city of Greenfield, Iowa, left four people dead and nearly three dozen injured, officials said, while a fifth person was killed elsewhere.
The New York state Senate passed a bill to explicitly allow evidence of prior sexual offenses in sex crimes cases, a move to change the legal standard Harvey Weinstein used to overturn his rape conviction.
Iran on Thursday prepared to inter its late president at the holiest site for Shiite Muslims in the Islamic Republic, a final sign of respect for a protégé of Iran's supreme leader killed in a helicopter crash earlier this week.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller says international students will be able to work off-campus for up to 24 hours per week starting in September.
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A Michigan dairy worker has been diagnosed with bird flu — the second human case associated with an outbreak in U.S. dairy cows.
Thousands of Canadians live each year with a devastating diagnosis: ALS. The condition, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, currently has no cure, but that could change after a promising breakthrough in Canadian research.
Families of the more than 60,000 children seeking services through the Ontario Autism Program say it is slow — a boy in Thorn Hill, Ont., has been on the wait-list for more than 2 1/2 years — that it is not truly needs based, that a lack of service providers means that even with money in hand some families can't find help, and that there is almost no transparency.
The surge in Canada's tick population is linked to recent changes in our climate, according to Mount Allison University biology professor Vett Lloyd.
A Michigan farmworker has been diagnosed with bird flu — the second human case associated with an outbreak in U.S. dairy cows.
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Charlie Colin, bassist and founding member of the American pop-rock band Train, best known for their early-aughts hits like 'Drops of Jupiter' and 'Meet Virginia,' has died. He was 58.
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The Writers Guild of Canada has ratified a new three-year contract that increases pay and implements artificial intelligence protections for writers, story editors and story consultants.
Nvidia on Wednesday overshot Wall Street estimates as its profit skyrocketed, bolstered by the chip-making dominance that has made the company an icon of the artificial intelligence boom.
WestJet Airlines plans to launch a new cheaper fare category that would be available to travellers willing to fly without a carry-on bag.
The Writers Guild of Canada has ratified a new three-year contract that increases pay and implements artificial intelligence protections for writers, story editors and story consultants.
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A private island on Nova Scotia’s South Shore has been listed for sale with a $11.5-million USD price tag.
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Sheldon Keefe has been hired as the head coach of the New Jersey Devils.
BMW and Ethiopian-American artist Julie Mehretu unveiled her newest 'Art Car' at the Pompidou Centre in Paris, France.
Interpol says more than 200 stolen Canadian vehicles have been found each week across the globe since February.
California could eventually join the European Union in requiring all new cars to alert drivers when they break the speed limit.
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A Montreal photographer captured the moment a Canada goose defended itself from a fox at the Botanical Garden.
Public libraries in Atlantic Canada are now lending a broader range of items.
Flashes of purple darting across the sky mixed with the serenading sound of songs will be noticed more with spring in full force in Manitoba.
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A B.C. woman says her service dog pulled her from a lake moments before she had a seizure, saving her life.
Something shifted in the pretty little village of Lumby, B.C., after Tatjana Stefanski vanished.
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The thunderstorms that swept through Quebec caused numerous power outages in the province.
Several business owners at Edmonton's Westmount Shopping Centre say they've been given only 30-days notice to find a new location.
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A new plane is transporting hundreds of non-critical patients to Halifax, saving time and keeping ambulances in their communities.
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Big changes are coming to Waterloo Region waste collection.
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Ontario Provincial Police are investigating two hate crime incidents this month at a northern Ontario high school.
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On Wednesday, the Civic Works Committee recommended holding a public meeting in July about whether to further restrict the hours when Londoners can use gas-powered lawn mowers, weed trimmers and leaf blowers.
The slow rollout of London’s Whole of Community Response to Homelessness is now being openly discussed by city leaders less than a year and a half after its launch.
Severe storms rolled into central Ontario on Wednesday, with Environment Canada warning about 120 kilometres per hour winds that had the potential to produce a tornado.
Environment Canada has lifted a Tornado warning for Simcoe County.
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In what is being billed as an 'example of anti-Palestinian racism in Windsor,' a video circulating on social media shows a young woman denied entry to a St. Clair College facility for wearing a keffiyeh.
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As 18-year-old Sidney McIntyre-Starko lay dying from a fentanyl overdose, several of her University of Victoria classmates watched helplessly, not recognizing what happened to her or how to perform CPR.
The cost of a plan to eradicate an invasive species of deer from Sidney Island just off the coast of Vancouver Island has ballooned.
A 49-year-old tow truck driver is dead after he suffered a medical emergency and drove off the highway Tuesday near Victoria.
One person is dead after a fight in Penticton early Sunday morning, according to authorities.
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After four targeted shootings in four days, Mounties in Kamloops are taking the unusual step of warning the public about two men they believe are likely to be targeted in future violent incidents.
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Lethbridge police hit the road over the May long weekend, as part of an ongoing traffic enforcement project.
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A U.S. citizen is facing impaired driving and other charges following an incident May 20 in Sault Ste. Marie.
79-year-old Madonna Wilkinson has been playing the accordion since she was 15, when she picked one up that had been left behind at one of her parents' rollicking parties in the oceanside town about 25 kilometres north of St. John's, N.L. She has played Sunday masses and St. Patrick's Day parties, and community events of all kinds.
Canada's new $10-a-day child care program is expanding, but there's growing evidence that demand for the program is rising even faster, leaving many parents on the outside looking in.
A new study shows an Atlantic salmon population in southern Newfoundland is disappearing, and it says nearby aquaculture operations are a likely contributor to the decline.
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