JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Shanna Gardner was back in court Wednesday afternoon to try and convince a judge she should receive bond.
She is being held on first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder charges in what police have described as a "murder-for-hire" plot to kill her ex-husband and father of her two children, Jared Bridegan.
Gardner's second husband, Mario Fernandez-Saldana, is also facing a first-degree murder charge.
Gardner's bond hearing which began around 1 p.m., was expected to unveil more about her alleged role in the murder of Bridegan. Not much about her alleged involvement has been publically released.
During the hearing, prosecutors called the lead investigator on the case, Detective Christopher Johns with the Jacksonville Beach Police Department, to the stand.
Much of the testimony from Johns surrounded text messages between Gardner and her close friend, Kim Jensen.
The texts went back as far as 2015, in which detectives and the prosecution say the two spoke in code, making references to "funeral potatoes" and needed someone who could do "magic" or "make someone disappear."
Johns testified that the references to "funeral potatoes" and "casserole" were used frequently between the two in the context of the death of Bridegan.
The defense argued that Gardner and Jensen spoke about killing Bridegan in a loose, joking way.
Johns said he was present when Jensen was interviewed in July and August 2023, where she disclosed conversations with Gardner about things Gardner and Fernandez spoke about.
"There were multiple conversations over a multi-year period, about Mario killing or finding people who could kill Jared," Johns testified.
He added Jensen said Fernandez would follow Bridegan and there would be instances "he was so close he could touch him."
"There were times where he [Fernandez] would watch his [Bridegan] movements, or follow him and try to, you know, develop patterns of what he did, and where he went and what would be the best way to carry out some type of plan," Johns said.
He testified that Fernandez described these moments as "missed opportunities."
Henry Tenon has since pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and prosecutors say he admitted to being the trigger man in Bridegan's killing and will testify in the upcoming trial of Gardner and Fernandez.
From the defense, Jose Baez pressed Johns that he did not have a single text message or phone call directly between Gardner and Tenon.
"Not a single text message between Shanna and Henry Tenon and no phone call records between the two," said Baez.
Johns testified that Tenon told him the agreement was that he [Tenon] would kill Bridegan for $150,000 and the money invested into a pallet business in small amounts to not raise suspicion.
Baez argued the checks written from Gardner's trust were signed by Fernandez and not her, even stating that Fernandez was the one in charge of the finances in their marriage.
Court documents show that Bridegan and Gardner had a very acrimonious divorce, and often were back in court to sort out issues involving the twins the couple shared and finances.
Bridegan was shot to death after he dropped off his twins at Gardner's home in the Sanctuary neighborhood in Jacksonville Beach in 2022.
His two-year-old daughter from his second marriage was in the car at the time and not physically hurt, but Johns described Bexley Bridegan as scared and crying and saying her daddy needed a doctor. Police say Bridegan stopped to move a tire that had been placed in a narrow, dimly lit stretch of roadway.
The defense called Gardner's first lawyer, Hank Coxe III, to the stand and he testified he told Gardner to move back to Tallahasee and then Savannah to be close to Jacksonville in case she was also arrested. His testimony was meant to counter the prosecution's argument that Gardner moved around evasively after Mario Fernandez's arrest.
They also called Megan White, Gardner's older sister, to the stand. She said the family never questioned Gardner about if she or Mario was involved in Bridegan's death. A point that prosecutors pushed back on asking her multiple times in various ways how the family business could put out a statement about the murder, but never discuss it. White also testified Gardner's children missed her and her son's medical condition meant he needed to stay at an elevation less than 1,000 feet.
To close, the prosecution said Shanna Gardner was the person who benefited the most from Bridegan's death and set the events in motion. His death meant she had full custody of her children and her trust fund. The defense countered that some of the information presented by Johns was hearsay and Gardner's moves after her husband Mario's arrest were at the direction of her first attorney.
In closing, the prosecution said Gardner had "no need to solicit a hitman," because "she married one."
Judge London Kite will take all the information under advisement and issue a written order in the coming days. We will keep you updated when the order is posted.