Topline: Mario Fernandez Saldana’s lawyers rested their case Tuesday after calling two school witnesses in the trial over Jared Bridegan’s 2022 ambush shooting in Jacksonville Beach.
Published: August 27, 2026 4:04 pm ET
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Mario Fernandez, left, and Jared Bridegan (via Jacksonville State Attorney's Office / GoFundMe)
JACKSONVILLE, FL — Defense attorneys for Mario Fernandez Saldana rested their case Tuesday morning after calling two witnesses in his murder trial over the 2022 ambush shooting death of Jared Bridegan, sending the case into closing arguments before jurors in Duval County.
According to News4JAX and live courtroom updates from EastIdahoNews.com, the defense called Discovery School employee Petra Obritzberger and teacher Lauren Meredith before resting at 9:26 a.m., and Fernandez then confirmed to Judge London Kite that he would not testify.
Obritzberger testified that Shanna Gardner had told school staff before the killing that Mario was moving out, then later said he would wait until the summer after Jared died. Meredith told jurors Mario was involved in school events and parent-teacher conferences, and said Shanna and Mario had told the school they were separating after a trip to Hawaii.
Prosecutors have argued Fernandez helped orchestrate a murder-for-hire plot that ended when Bridegan, a 33-year-old Microsoft senior design manager and father of four, stopped to move a tire that had been placed in the road in Jacksonville Beach and was shot with his 2-year-old daughter still strapped into the vehicle. Prosecutors say Henry Tenon was the gunman and that Fernandez connected Tenon to Gardner, while the defense has argued the state failed to prove Fernandez intended for the killing to happen.
The case moved into closing arguments later Tuesday, with prosecutors telling jurors that Fernandez was the thread connecting the evidence and the defense insisting the state had not shown direct proof that he planned or carried out the killing. Bridegan’s ex-wife, Gardner, is scheduled for a separate trial in September, and Tenon is also still facing trial after backing out of a guilty plea.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
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Defense Rests in Mario Fernandez Trial After Two Witnesses in Jared Bridegan Killing
Mario Fernandez Saldana’s lawyers rested their case Tuesday after calling two school witnesses in the trial over Jared Bridegan’s 2022 ambush shooting in Jacksonville Beach.
By Silvia Torres
Published: August 27, 2026 4:04 pm ET
Mario Fernandez, left, and Jared Bridegan (via Jacksonville State Attorney's Office / GoFundMe)
JACKSONVILLE, FL — Defense attorneys for Mario Fernandez Saldana rested their case Tuesday morning after calling two witnesses in his murder trial over the 2022 ambush shooting death of Jared Bridegan, sending the case into closing arguments before jurors in Duval County.
According to News4JAX and live courtroom updates from EastIdahoNews.com, the defense called Discovery School employee Petra Obritzberger and teacher Lauren Meredith before resting at 9:26 a.m., and Fernandez then confirmed to Judge London Kite that he would not testify.
Obritzberger testified that Shanna Gardner had told school staff before the killing that Mario was moving out, then later said he would wait until the summer after Jared died. Meredith told jurors Mario was involved in school events and parent-teacher conferences, and said Shanna and Mario had told the school they were separating after a trip to Hawaii.
Prosecutors have argued Fernandez helped orchestrate a murder-for-hire plot that ended when Bridegan, a 33-year-old Microsoft senior design manager and father of four, stopped to move a tire that had been placed in the road in Jacksonville Beach and was shot with his 2-year-old daughter still strapped into the vehicle. Prosecutors say Henry Tenon was the gunman and that Fernandez connected Tenon to Gardner, while the defense has argued the state failed to prove Fernandez intended for the killing to happen.
The case moved into closing arguments later Tuesday, with prosecutors telling jurors that Fernandez was the thread connecting the evidence and the defense insisting the state had not shown direct proof that he planned or carried out the killing. Bridegan’s ex-wife, Gardner, is scheduled for a separate trial in September, and Tenon is also still facing trial after backing out of a guilty plea.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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Editor Picks
Latest Articles
Defense Rests in Mario Fernandez Trial After Two Witnesses in Jared Bridegan Killing
Mario Fernandez Saldana’s lawyers rested their case Tuesday after calling two school witnesses in the trial over Jared Bridegan’s 2022 ambush shooting in Jacksonville Beach.
By Silvia Torres
Published: August 27, 2026 4:04 pm ET
Mario Fernandez, left, and Jared Bridegan (via Jacksonville State Attorney's Office / GoFundMe)
JACKSONVILLE, FL — Defense attorneys for Mario Fernandez Saldana rested their case Tuesday morning after calling two witnesses in his murder trial over the 2022 ambush shooting death of Jared Bridegan, sending the case into closing arguments before jurors in Duval County.
According to News4JAX and live courtroom updates from EastIdahoNews.com, the defense called Discovery School employee Petra Obritzberger and teacher Lauren Meredith before resting at 9:26 a.m., and Fernandez then confirmed to Judge London Kite that he would not testify.
Obritzberger testified that Shanna Gardner had told school staff before the killing that Mario was moving out, then later said he would wait until the summer after Jared died. Meredith told jurors Mario was involved in school events and parent-teacher conferences, and said Shanna and Mario had told the school they were separating after a trip to Hawaii.
Prosecutors have argued Fernandez helped orchestrate a murder-for-hire plot that ended when Bridegan, a 33-year-old Microsoft senior design manager and father of four, stopped to move a tire that had been placed in the road in Jacksonville Beach and was shot with his 2-year-old daughter still strapped into the vehicle. Prosecutors say Henry Tenon was the gunman and that Fernandez connected Tenon to Gardner, while the defense has argued the state failed to prove Fernandez intended for the killing to happen.
The case moved into closing arguments later Tuesday, with prosecutors telling jurors that Fernandez was the thread connecting the evidence and the defense insisting the state had not shown direct proof that he planned or carried out the killing. Bridegan’s ex-wife, Gardner, is scheduled for a separate trial in September, and Tenon is also still facing trial after backing out of a guilty plea.
Presumption of Innocence: A presumption of innocence means that any defendant in a criminal trial is presumed to be innocent until they have been proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. The defendant in this case is only accused of the charges set forth in the criminal complaint. They are innocent until proven guilty.
Editor's Note: ThePo makes every effort to accurately transcribe the contents of affidavits of probable cause contained in criminal complaints. Often, the complaints themselves are copies of copies of faxed copies, and are difficult to read. To confirm the accuracy of our transcription, contact the Magisterial District Court listed above and request a copy of the criminal complaint. It's a public record to which you are entitled.
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