Jacob Ferro Sentenced to 548 Days In State Jail

SAN ANGELO, TX – After being found guilty of recklessly causing bodily injury to a child Thursday afternoon, Jacob Ferro was present Friday in court for his punishment hearing. As witnesses for the defense and state took the stand, two very different personalities were described by the witnesses, which painted a very contrasting image of the type of person Ferro is in his community.

The first witness for the state was a child who had lived in the home with Ferro and the victim at the time of the incident; she is one of Ferro’s daughters. As state attorney White asked her questions, she re-affirmed her statement that violence and physical punishment were common in the Ferro household.

She recalled one incident in which, after being up later than she should have, she had an argument with her father. That led to him holding her in a headlock and causing her to blackout. According to the witness, she had gone to talk with the victim of the first incident because she was having suicidal thoughts and he was the only one awake at that time.

After White asked her if her father took responsibility for his actions, she said that “no one held him responsible for what he does” in their home. She also stated that, when she brought up the topic to her dad regarding his excessive use of force, he also said he “didn’t remember.” As she continued her testimony, she told the judge that, when the kids had threatened to tell others about the abuse going on, they were told that if they talked they would be taken to a foster home where things would be “worse.”

She also gave details regarding the fact that her father and stepmother gave them permission to smoke and provided marijuana to her on various occasions. According to her, the day she turned 14 was the first time she was allowed to smoke. The other children were also permitted to smoke as well, excluding the younger children. She did state that she never saw her father smoke because of his “job.” She is currently not living in the Ferro household and had stated that she believes going back home would not be in her “best interest.”

The second witness was TGCSO Deputy Sheriff Tommy Williams who was the officer in charge of monitoring the calls Ferro made while in jail. The state went on to present four calls to the judge as evidence.

In the first call, Ferro is heard saying to his wife that she needed to get him “the f*** out of here,” and that he would get his attorney to “delay this [the trial] for two years.” In the second audio, Janice Ferro tells her husband to “take responsibility; you have a control issue.”

In the third call, the defendant tells his wife to “tell the kids they need to refuse to go” if CPS went to remove them from the home. He is also heard telling his wife that she should tell the police that the products she had consumed in Colorado were legal, because they were legal in that state. In the fourth, he reminds his wife that the victim had wanted then to “kill himself” and that he “shouldn’t have gone that far.”

After this, Judge Weatherby called for a recess and the court proceeding continued after lunch. The defense then went on to call several witnesses who spoke on Ferro’s character and behavior.

The first witness was Wilma Stuart, a volunteer advocate for CASA in San Angelo. She had been around the children for the last year and a half and had seen the development of both Ferro and his wife, as well as that of the children. She said Ferro and his wife attended every meeting with CPS, every class they needed, and had even reached out to her when they had questions regarding how to handle certain situations. She then stated that she was there to advocate for the children, and she considered having them “return to the home with monitor” because “they did better together,” and it was in the best interest of the children.

The next witnesses was Dan Burns, Jim Horn, and Robert O'Donnell. All three gentlemen knew Ferro because they had completed projects together, and two of them were his neighbors.

Burns commended Ferro on his work ethic and considered him a “good fellow.” 

“As far as I am concerned, his character is A1,” said Burns.

The man testified to the court that he had relied on Ferro to help him with projects because, due to his older age, he had trouble completing certain tasks as well as lending Ferro money when he was doing renovations on his own home. When asked by White if he knew what the charges against Ferro were, Burns stated he knew there had been an issue, but wasn’t aware of the details.

Horn and O’Donnell had been Ferro’s neighbors for nearly two years. They both described Ferro and his wife as friendly and always willing to help. Horn testified that, on various occasions, Ferro had volunteered to help him or his wife complete tasks they couldn’t do because of their age. He stated that he had never heard Ferro raise his voice, even to his dogs. He went on to say that if he needed help with something he “wouldn’t hesitate to ask Ferro to do it. He knew about the charges after reading the paper, but he said had always considered Ferro as “trying to help the old folks in the neighborhood.”

O’Donnell knew Ferro was facing charges, but was not aware of the extent of them. He testified that, on several occasions, he had helped Ferro with renovations to his home and Ferro had, in turn, helped him out when he needed it. Their families also socialized at each other's homes. He considered Ferro a “friendly” person and someone who “did what he said he would do.”

The next two witness were members of Ferro’s church. Pastor Tim Wood praised Ferro for his dedication to the church and to his job. As a subcontractor, Wood often worked alongside Ferro five days a week and socialized regularly at church. He called Ferro “a very dependable/productive person of the community.” After reading the articles that several media news sources published regarding the case, he stated that “the Jacob presented in the article is not the Jacob I know.” Additionally, he had “never seen any aggression” from Ferro.

Kendall Wood, the church’s Youth Pastor, also praised Ferro for his dedication to his faith and for his help in the church community. Ferro had been serving as a Sunday School Bus Driver in charge of transporting kids back and forth between the church on Sunday, and Wednesday nights as well on occasion. He testified that, as a bus driver, Ferro was a great help. 

“It was amazing [how much] they love him” and how the children “flock to him,” said Wood.

He won’t further on to state that he would feel safe leaving his own children in Ferro’s care. The church always places two adults in each van or bus, and they had never received a complaint on Ferro, nor had they seen any worrying behavior. He also stated that Ferro and his family rarely missed church and were always willing to help. He was aware of Ferro’s criminal past and the charge for which he was convicted, but considered Ferro had “made amazing stories” in his recovery.

Ferro’s bail bondsmen also testified that Ferro had never presented a problem for him, always showed up for his weekly check-ins, or called in if he couldn’t, and made his payments on time. After this, the defense rested and both attorneys prepared their closing arguments.

The defense acknowledged that Ferro had been in a “rough spot” about eight or nine years ago at the time of his last criminal offense and had worked hard to become a better person and parent. Defense attorney Jimmy Stewart asked the court to consider probation as Ferro’s punishment.

State attorney White reminded the court that what had happened to the victim was not an isolated incident, and the “children for years lived with fear of the defendant.” She also stated that Ferro had been given probation on another conviction years before and that had been revoked. She claimed that “the defendant isn’t concerned with following the rules; he finds ways to circumvent them.”

Judge Weatherby deliberated for nearly half an hour and sentenced Jacob Ferro to 548 days in the State Jail of the TDCJ. Ferro would be given credit for the days he had spent in jail previously and was taken into custody by a Tom Green County Sheriff deputy.

For our previous story on this case, click here.