A North Carolina man placed a call to 911 not because he was in danger, but to report a murder — that he allegedly committed.

Travis Huff, 40, was arrested on Feb. 19 at a CubeSmart storage facility in Cary, North Carolina. Police reported to the scene after 911 dispatchers got a call about a “murder” at the apartment of Rebecca Carter, 41. Carter was a manager at the CubeSmart and lived in an apartment connected to the facility’s leasing office. The 911 call, which was described in an arrest warrant obtained by WRAL, a local NBC affiliate, had been placed by Huff, her boyfriend of about two years, who allegedly told dispatchers, “There’s been a murder.”

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3. Judge texted bailiff, clerk that he can’t…

Criminal Justice

Judge texted bailiff, clerk that he can’t be in court next day because ‘I just shot my wife,’ jurors are told

By Debra Cassens Weiss

February 20, 2025, 12:32 pm CST

A California judge admitted that he shot his wife in a text to court personnel, in a police car and when sitting alone in a police interrogation room, jurors were told Wednesday.

Judge Jeffrey Ferguson of the Orange County Superior Court in California is accused of fatally shooting his wife in August 2023 while watching the AMC TV show Breaking Bad at their home and arguing about finances. Their adult son was also present.

Law360, the Associated Press and KABC have coverage.

Ferguson’s defense lawyer maintains that the shooting was an accident, according to the AP.

Orange County, California, Deputy District Attorney Seton Hunt showed jurors a copy of a text to Ferguson’s clerk and bailiff, the articles report.

“I just lost it. I just shot my wife. I won’t be in tomorrow. I will be in custody. I’m so sorry,” the text said.

Jurors were also shown a video of Ferguson muttering to himself in a police interrogation room, according to Law360.

“I killed her. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, convict my ass. I did it,” he said.

In the back of the police car, Ferguson said, “I killed my wife. F- – -. Ugh, s- – -,” video showed.

At the police station, Ferguson’s blood alcohol level was 0.065. Hunt said a forensic scientist would testify that the level was likely 0.17 or more when Ferguson’s wife, Sheryl, was shot.

The adult son testified that he had stepped outside as his parents argued and heard his mother say words to the effect, “Why don’t you point a real gun at me?” The son said he turned around and saw his father fire the gun, according to Law360.

Hunt is seeking a second-degree murder conviction, according to KABC. It’s unclear whether jurors will also be able to consider a manslaughter charge.

See also:

Criminal court judge, 72, arrested in wife’s shooting death

Judge who made ‘reckless’ Facebook allegation about prosecutor is admonished

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A teen accused of stabbing his mom to death in Florida — two years after claiming to kill his dad in self-defense — can be heard talking to his grandmother in a newly-released bodycam video about how he told his mother, “I’m not a murderer,” less than a year before allegedly taking her life.

“I was saying, ‘Mom, I’m not a psychopath,”” Collin Griffith, 17, can be heard telling his grandmother in a bodycam video captured by a deputy with the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office and released by local Fox affiliate WFTX on Tuesday.

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3. Appeals judge told state attorney how to…

Judiciary

Appeals judge told state attorney how to handle resentencing while badmouthing others, texts indicate

By Debra Cassens Weiss

November 12, 2024, 11:34 am CST

A Florida appeals judge who obtained a 2004 murder conviction of an alleged gang leader texted advice to the Miami-Dade, Florida, state attorney handling his resentencing while “denigrating defense attorneys and badmouthing local judges,” according to the Miami Herald.

The judge, Judge Bronwyn Miller of the Third District Court of Appeal in Florida, is a state’s witness in the resentencing of the defendant, Corey Smith, who was convicted in four murders.

Prosecutors announced Sunday they would no longer seek the death penalty in Smith’s resentencing, the Miami Herald reports in a separate story. Prosecutors attributed the decision to the passage of time and the unavailability of witnesses.

Smith was being resentenced because two capital murder convictions were based on less-than-unanimous juror votes, a practice that had been banned in a 2017 Florida law.

“Miller’s text messages show a close relationship with Miami-Dade’s elected state attorney and a low regard for the judge overseeing the case and defense attorneys in general,” the Miami Herald reports. “Though she left the state attorney’s office about 20 years ago, the texting reveals a familiarity allowing Miller to browbeat [Miami-Dade State Attorney] Fernandez Rundle and second-guess how she runs the office.”

In the text messages, sent between January and July, Miller:

  • Told Rundle that “there is a huge factual error” in a document that referred to “potential favors provided to witnesses.” Miller’s requested changes were included in a later court filing. The text was sent in April, while the Smith case was pending before the Third District Court of Appeal. The case was moved to another appeals court in July.

  • Criticized Rundle for allowing a “misogynistic pervert anti-death penalty campaigner” to work on the Smith case. The prosecutor had written a novel called Death Penalty Desired: Passion and Murder that was, in the Herald’s words, “rife with sexual violence and misogyny.” Two weeks after Miller sent her text, the prosecutor was told to leave within two months.

  • Told Rundle that two judges, including the one handling Smith’s resentencing, disliked Rundle because she didn’t back elements of a bail reform plan that they supported. Judge Andrea Wolfson “will destroy you because of the bail bond issue,” Miller wrote. Wolfson kicked two prosecutors off the resentencing case in March.

In February, Miller testified about a memo that she wrote in the murder trial that said witnesses were given favors, such as food, beverages and cigars. Defense lawyers said they were unaware of the memo. Miller testified that she didn’t know about a witness having sexual contact at the police department, as had been alleged.

The state attorney’s office released a statement to the Miami Herald on Sunday that said Miller sent “occasional and brief texts” to Rundle “in pursuit of the truth.” The statement said Rundle is “engaged in the decision-making on all major cases prosecuted by her office and specifically those involving the death penalty.”

Smith’s lawyers, Allison Miller and Craig Whisenhunt, alleged in an email to the Miami Herald that Miller “simultaneously played the parts of judge, prosecutor, witness,” and the texts call into question her ability to serve as a judge.

Miller told the Miami Herald that she can’t comment. She cited the advice of an ethics expert who said she should not make public comments because they could affect the pending proceedings.

A Las Vegas teen is accused of spearheading a murder conspiracy by telling a group of friends that they needed to “stick to the same story” after a fatal shooting.

Daisy Gonzalez is linked to a Jan. 2 shooting at an apartment complex, Las Vegas CBS affiliate KLAS reported. Police had received a call from someone who said his neighbor, Darian Gonzalez, was shot inside his apartment and several people were seen running from the residence.

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3. Group representing immigration judges told…

Immigration Law

Group representing immigration judges told to get approval before speaking publicly

By Debra Cassens Weiss

March 5, 2024, 3:28 pm CST

A group representing immigration judges has spoken out in the past to criticize court administration and advocate for more independence.

But now, representatives for the National Association of Immigration Judges can’t speak to Congress, journalists and professional forums without Department of Justice approval, report the Associated Press and Government Executive. They are also banned from writing articles and blog posts absent approval.

The ban was imposed in a Feb. 15 directive by Judge Sheila McNulty, the chief immigration judge of the DOJ’s Executive Office of Immigration Review, which is the DOJ office that oversees the immigration court system.

McNulty said any bargaining agreement that preserved a right to speak out is no longer valid because the National Association of Immigration Judges lost its recognition as a union in November 2020. The National Association of Immigration Judges is appealing that decision by the Federal Labor Relations Authority.

Th AP reached out to union leaders Mimi Tsankov and Samuel B. Cole for comment. They said they were not permitted to comment without approval.

Matt Biggs, president of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, called the directive “pretty draconian” and “pretty unprecedented” in an interview with Government Executive. The federation is the parent union to the National Association of Immigration Judges.