JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (Court TV) — Attorneys representing two defendants charged in the alleged murder-for-hire of Microsoft executive Jared Bridegan returned to court this week as they fought to suppress key evidence ahead of their upcoming trials.
Jared Bridegan was killed on Feb. 16, 2022. (Jacksonville Beach Police Department)
Jared Bridegan, 33, was gunned down while he was driving home after dropping his two older children off at the home of his ex-wife, Shanna Gardner, and her husband, Mario Fernandez Saldana. Bridegan stopped his car after seeing a tire in the center of the road, which investigators say was placed there specifically to lure him to his death. Prosecutors say Henry Tenon, who was a tenant at a rental property owned by both Gardner and Fernandez Saldana, placed the tire and killed the victim when he got out to investigate.
Gardner, Fernandez Saldana and Tenon were each arrested and charged with murder and conspiracy in Bridegan’s death. Tenon, who was arrested first, initially entered into a plea agreement with prosecutors and had said he would testify against his co-defendants. To that end, he pleaded guilty on March 16, 2023. Nearly three years later, on Feb. 17, 2026, Tenon withdrew his guilty plea in court and said he would no longer testify.
On Wednesday, Tenon’s attorney urged Judge London Kite to suppress the statements Tenon made as part of the plea. Tenon’s new attorney, Julie Schlax, said that her client had no idea that the statements he made could be used against him if he changed his mind about the plea. Under Florida law, statements made as part of plea negotiations are generally inadmissible in court.
Henry Tenon appeared at a motions hearing on May 13, 2026. (Court TV)
Tenon gave a sworn statement to prosecutors and a detective, in the presence of his former attorney, on March 15, 2023, in which he detailed his role in the alleged murder-for-hire plot. The next day, Tenon pleaded guilty, but at no time during either event did anyone tell him that his statements could be used against him, his lawyer says. “During the entire plea colloquy as well,” Schlax said Wednesday, “there is no admonition. There’s no suggestion that Mr. Tenon in any way has waived his Fifth Amendment rights about any statements previously given.” Kite, who was not the judge who accepted Tenon’s colloquy, asked for a copy of the transcript to review.
Schlax argued that had prosecutors interviewed Tenon after that court hearing, the statements would be admissible, but because the statement was made before the agreement was ratified by a judge, it should be protected.
“Obviously the defense is correct in pointing out that we did not explain to the Defendant that these would be used against him, because it went without saying, because the purpose of the sworn statement was for the defendant to testify repeatedly in this case over and over again, under oath, sworn testimony about his involvement and the involvement of his co-defendents,” Assistant State Attorney Alan Mizrahi said. “So the purpose of taking that sworn statement was because it was a negotiation, but he was becoming a witness in the case and was waiving all of his rights to remain silent. There’s no reason to read him his rights or explain to him it can be used against him, since that was the purpose of the plea.”
Shanna Gardner walks into court for a pretrial hearing on May 13, 2026. (Court TV)
Kite said she would take the issue under advisement and issue a ruling at Tenon’s next court date on May 26.
Hours later, Kite presided over a hearing for Gardner, who had asked to suppress evidence from wiretaps and search warrants in the case.
One of Gardner’s attorneys, Patrick Korody, argued that the affidavits that served as the basis for search warrants in the case focused on Tenon and Fernandez Saldana. “The allegations in the affidavit against Ms. Gardner were largely motive,” Korody said. “That is not enough.” Korody argued there is no evidence of Gardner’s involvement beyond an allegation from the state that she provided money to her husband to give to Tenon.
Prosecutors pushed back, saying they previously submitted “direct evidence from her own statements to individuals that are outlined in these affidavits that she had the conscious intent, voiced in her desire or hope to take him out, get rid of him, take care of him, hire a hitman,” Assistant State Attorney Christina Stifler said. Evidence previously released in the case included multiple text exchanges stalking about her ex, including one in which she said, “It gives me such great pleasure imagining slitting his throat.”
Kite will rule on the motion at Gardner’s next hearing on June 1.
