Modesto man accused of killing his father makes first court appearance

A Modesto man accused of murder in his elderly father’s death made his first appearance in Stanislaus Superior Court on Friday afternoon.

Bryan Ferriera, 47, could barely speak in court when questioned by the judge Friday, and his attorney wants more time to be certain his client is mentally competent to proceed with the criminal case.

On Tuesday, the defendant’s father, 72-year-old Wayne Ferriera, was found dead inside his home in 2500 block of Verano Avenue in east Modesto. Modesto police officials detained Bryan Ferriera and later arrested him on suspicion of murder.

It’s unclear how the father died.

The Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office on Thursday filed a criminal complaint against Bryan Ferriera, charging him with one count of murder.

The filed complaint indicates the alleged murder occurred Feb. 24 or Feb. 25; the victim was found dead Feb. 26. But the complaint does not have any indication as to how Wayne Ferriera died.

Deputy Public Defender Marcus Mumford, Bryan Ferriera’s court-appointed attorney, told the judge that his client was not responsive when he spoke to the defendant shortly before Friday’s hearing. He said his client wasn’t able to answer simple questions.

The defense attorney told the judge that he believed his client was not sufficiently coherent to proceed with Friday’s arraignment hearing. Mumford said he wasn’t certain that a mental competency evaluation for his client was needed, but he wanted more time to speak to the defendant and conduct some research into his background before proceeding.

Wayne Ferriera’s daughter found him dead at his home when she went to check on him Tuesday morning. His family has told The Bee that Bryan Ferriera was also at the home at that time.

Two of Wayne Ferriera’s granddaughters told The Bee that Bryan Ferriera has schizophrenia and has been violent toward his father and others in the past. They also said a violent threat about a month ago resulted in a 72-hour psychiatric hold.

On Friday, Superior Court Judge Dawna Reeves asked Bryan Ferriera if his name and date of birth were accurate on the criminal complaint. The defendant had some difficulty responding, barely saying into a microphone that his name and date of birth were correct.

Reeves postponed the arraignment and scheduled Bryan Ferriera to return to court March 11. The defendant did not enter a plea. He will remain held without bail at the Stanislaus County Jail.

The defendant initially was scheduled to make his first court appearance Thursday afternoon, but the judge said sheriff’s officials were unable to transport him to the courthouse. It’s unclear why.

This story was originally published March 1, 2019 at 3:58 PM.