JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The couple accused in a murder-for-hire plot three years ago to kill a Jacksonville Beach father were in court for a hearing after the killer said his testimony was false, and it was that statement that was front and center on Friday.
Henry Tenon, the man who admitted to pulling the trigger, claimed his testimony was false, according to newly obtained court documents related to the case. This revelation could impact the case against Mario Fernandez and Shanna Gardner, Bridegan’s ex-wife and her estranged husband, who are accused of orchestrating Bridegan’s murder.
In court Friday morning, attorneys for Fernandez and Gardner pushed to get Tenon’s plea deal tossed.
Attorneys for Fernandez and Gardner also filed a motion with the court looking for additional information about a court appearance by Tenon last month.
During that hearing, Tenon was on record saying “false testimony” and that he wanted a new attorney.
In an effort to clear up the court record, Tenon’s attorney appeared at the hearing for Gardner and Fernandez.
Tenon’s attorney Alan Chipperfield told the questioning attorneys he was so shocked when his client uttered those two words he didn’t even register the request for a new attorney since the two had just talked and things were fine.
Although one attorney tried to get information about what Tenon may have been referencing in his statement, Judge London Kite quickly shut that down.
While we did not learn what Tenon meant when he said “false testimony” his attorney gave insight into what may have led to the outburst last month.
“I told the state that I thought, I suspected that there may be an inmate in the jail who was influencing Mr. Tenon and that it could have been a co-defendant had gotten to him,” Chipperfield said. “That’s just speculation trying to figure out why my client surprised me in court.”
Tenon was not at Friday’s 9 a.m. hearing and he’s not expected to be back in court until the middle of April.
Bridegan, a 33-year-old father of four, was ambushed and killed in Jacksonville Beach in 2022. Now, newly obtained court documents reveal Tenon is backtracking on his prior testimony.
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During a Jan. 13 hearing, Tenon attempted to inform the judge that his testimony was false.
A transcript from the hearing details the exchange:
MR. TENON: Your Honor, may I say something?
THE COURT: Talk to Mr. Chipperfield first. Tell him what you want to tell me. Okay?
MR. TENON: I just want to bring to your attention that my testimony --
THE COURT: No, no, no.
MR. TENON: -- false testimony --
THE COURT: Hold on.
MR. CHIPPERFIELD: Mr. Tenon, we need to talk about that.
MR. TENON: I need another attorney.
A legal analyst said Tenon’s statement has significant implications.
Attorney Gene Nichols said the sudden change raises questions about the integrity of the case. He called Tenon’s admission surprising.
“What I’m most surprised about is Tenon comes back to court with his lawyer, and in essence, probably blurts out, yeah, I need to tell you something, Judge. And it appears that Mr. Chipperfield didn’t know what he was going to say,“ Nichols said. “Henry Tenon has admitted in court that he has lied about something, and now what we’re going to see happen is the State Attorney’s Office will have to inform the defense what Tenon lied about.”
Tenon had previously pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in exchange for testifying against Fernandez and Gardner. The agreement included the state dropping additional charges at the time of sentencing.
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Nichols warned that Tenon’s plea deal could be in jeopardy.
“Any agreement he made to testify is to testify truthfully, and if he’s going to come in and now say something different than what the state has been building their case on for all of this time period, then there’s going to be a problem,” Nichols said.
He also noted that the defense may push for more details about Tenon’s statement.
“Tenon has already admitted to pulling the trigger. He’s the state’s number one witness against the other two defendants. So from that standpoint—what exactly is he backtracking on?”
A hearing is scheduled Friday for Shanna Gardner and Mario Fernandez, for the court to hear more about Tenon’s statements.
Fernandez’s attorney read about Tenon’s comments in documents given to them by prosecutors and filed a motion requesting specific discovery earlier this week.
The next scheduled hearing for Tenon is set for April 14. While Chipperfield has not withdrawn from the case, legal experts suggest it’s something to watch for.
News4JAX has reached out to the State Attorney’s Office for comment and is awaiting a response.