Joseph Ferguson was born in September 1980 and raised in south Sacramento, California. He was one of three sons of Susan and Thomas Ferguson. His early life was marked by familial instability and trauma. In December 1998, his parents divorced. The following year, his mother was imprisoned for 14 years after pleading no contest to charges of molesting Ferguson and one of his brothers when they were under 14 years old.

Ferguson obtained a private security guard permit in March 1999 and began working for Burns International Security shortly thereafter. Colleagues described him as a loner with a volatile temperament. He had a brief romantic relationship with fellow security guard Nina Susu, which ended shortly before the events of September 2001. Following their breakup, Ferguson vandalized Susu's car with an axe, leading to his suspension from Burns Security on September 7, 2001. Despite reports of threats he made, no legal action was taken at that time due to his lack of a criminal record.

On September 7, 2001, Ferguson was suspended from his job at Burns International Security after his ex-girlfriend and co-worker, Nina Susu, reported that he had vandalized her car with an ax following their breakup. Despite warnings to the FBI and local police about threats Ferguson had made, no immediate action was taken due to his lack of a criminal record.

Late on September 8, Ferguson initiated a killing spree in Sacramento, California. He first fatally shot Susu and another Burns security guard, Marsha Jackson, at a city corporation yard. He then proceeded to the Miller Park marina, where he killed two more individuals: George Bernardino, a Burns security guard, and John Derek Glimstad, a 19-year-old marina worker.

On September 9, Ferguson took Burns supervisor Nikolay Popovich and his wife hostage at their home in Rancho Cordova. He forced them to assist in recording a six-minute videotape in which he expressed his motivations and intentions. Afterward, he killed Popovich and released his wife, instructing her to deliver the tape to authorities.

In the early hours of September 10, Ferguson engaged in a 40-minute high-speed chase with law enforcement, during which he fired over 200 rounds from an AK-47, injuring a California Highway Patrol officer and a bystander. The chase concluded when Ferguson crashed into a light pole and, as officers approached, he shot himself in the head.

The 2001 Sacramento shootings resulted in five fatalities and two injuries. The incident was quickly overshadowed by the September 11 attacks that occurred the following day, leading to limited national media coverage.