JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Shanna Gardner and Mario Fernandez, her estranged husband, were back in court Wednesday for a pre-trial hearing in the murder-for-hire case against them.
The hearing was scheduled for Wednesday morning, but after some confusion between the prosecution and defense on what time the hearing was scheduled to start, the hearing was postponed to 1 p.m. Wednesday.
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Gardner and Fernandez are accused of plotting to kill Gardner’s ex-husband, Jared Bridegan, in 2022.
Gardner and Fernandez are under indictment for first-degree murder in Bridegan’s killing, and both face the possibility of the death penalty.
A former tenant of Fernandez, Henry Tenon, admitted to pulling the trigger in the ambush shooting in Jacksonville Beach in 2022.
Police say the father of four was gunned down while trying to move a tire that had been placed in the road as part of the ambush.
At their last court appearance last month, Judge London Kite denied requests from Gardner’s attorneys to have her released on bond and to have the charges dismissed.
Kite said she ruled “without prejudice” and told Gardner’s defense they could bring up the issues in their motion again if new information came to light.
Gardner’s attorneys have been arguing prosecutorial misconduct, saying the state “knowingly presented false evidence that was material to the court’s denial of bond” and that Gardner’s due process rights have been violated.
READ: Motion from Gardner’s attorneys to dismiss case
During the last hearing, Judge Kite OK’d a motion from the defense to compel the prosecution to hand over a list of records/people it subpoenaed who are out of state.
She did not rule on a motion the defense filed requesting a transcript of a detective’s grand jury testimony.
Kite wants the defense and state to agree on a jury selection date and other key dates, so they can find a final date for the trial.