Jared Bridegan murder: Ex-wife asks for bond, appears in court alongside her estranged husband

The estranged husband and wife charged in the murder-for-hire plot of St. Johns County father Jared Bridegan were back in court on Wednesday.

Mario Fernandez Saldana and Shanna Gardner stood with their attorneys in front of a judge at a joint pretrial hearing at the Duval County Courthouse.

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Action News Jax’s Alexus Cleavenger was in court as Gardner’s attorneys discussed with Judge London Kite a bond motion that was filed by Attorney Jose Baez on Gardner’s behalf this week.

Baez is nationally known for representing Casey Anthony in Central Florida in 2011. She was acquitted of the murder of her daughter Caylee Anthony.

Ultimately, no decisions on Gardner’s bond were made at Wednesday’s hearing.

RELATED: ‘Short tempered’ and ‘aggressive’ used to describe suspect in Jared Bridegan murder case

“Our position is that we need to hear the bond motion, that is separate and distinct from the motion to disqualify the state,” defense attorney Patrick Korody said.

We told you in November that the defense filed a motion asking for the Fourth Judicial Circuit to be disqualified. The State Attorney’s Office said in response that it should not be disqualified from prosecuting those accused in Bridegan’s murder.

RELATED: ‘Know anyone who shuts people up:’ Docs reveal threatening comments before Jared Bridegan’s murder

Wednesday’s hearing comes after Action News Jax has spent days digging through hundreds of pages of case documents, which detail police interviews with both Gardner and Fernandez before they were arrested.

In those documents, Gardner described negative feelings her parents had regarding her ex-husband. Gardner was asked if there was any animosity between Bridegan and her parents over the money he received. She stated, “they hated it. They hated the idea that Jared felt entitled to their money.”

Another section reveals Gardner shared thoughts about Kirsten Bridegan, the second wife of Jared Bridegan.

RELATED: New documents released describe failed marriages at center of Bridegan murder-for-hire plot

Gardner stated, according to the documents, she felt as though Kirsten Bridegan attacked her on social media.

Kirsten Bridegan was also present in court on Wednesday for Fernandez Saldana and Gardner’s hearing, but did not speak publicly.

The next hearing for both Gardner and Fernandez Saldana will be on Feb. 14 at 9 a.m.

The crime

Jared Bridegan was gunned down Feb. 16, 2022, in Jacksonville Beach. He had just taken his twins he shared with Gardner, and his then-2-year-old Bexley, his daughter with wife Kirsten Bridegan, to dinner.

The software engineer had just dropped off the twins at Gardner’s house when he encountered a tire on Sanctuary Boulevard, a one-way road. He was headed home to his second wife, Kirsten Bridegan, with whom he shared children Bexley and London.

Jacksonville Beach Police Chief Gene Paul Smith said during the announcement of the first arrest in January, that “the tire was purposely placed there to make him stop, which he did.”

JUNE 2022 INTERVIEW: ‘Wish it weren’t like this’: Ex-wife of Jared Bridegan, father killed in Jacksonville Beach, speaks

“Tragically he began to exit his vehicle to move the tire and he was gunned down in cold blood,” Smith said.

Bridegan was shot several times while Bexley was still strapped into a car seat in the back seat of Bridegan’s car.

The arrests

Fernandez Saldana was arrested in March on charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, child abuse, and solicitation to commit a capital felony.

The arrest of Henry Tenon in connection to Bridegan’s murder was announced in January 2023. He was arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit murder, accessory after the fact to a capital felony, child abuse, and second-degree murder

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Tenon, who rented a home from Fernandez Saldana, agreed to plead guilty to second-degree murder. That means Tenon faces 15 years to life in prison, but not the death penalty.

Gardner was arrested in August in Washington and is facing charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, solicitation to commit murder, and child abuse.

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