JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Protection attorneys and prosecutors within the Jared Bridegan murder-for-hire case are going through a major problem: The mountains of proof they’re having to sift by means of.
And now, the detective initially tasked with reviewing and redacting that overwhelming proof is formally, properly, overwhelmed.
Clay County Sheriff’s Workplace Detective Ben Simmons admitted to the decide that his company simply doesn’t have the sources to deal with the undertaking.
“In my profession as a digital prints examiner, I’ve by no means had this magnitude of knowledge… numerous information like gigabytes, terabytes,” Clay County Sheriff’s Workplace Detective Ben Simmons mentioned. “I’ve completed minimal redactions for small instances. However nothing to this magnitude.”
That magnitude of proof is towards Shanna Gardner and her estranged husband, Mario Fernandez, who’re accused of a murder-for-hire plot to kill Bridegan, Gardner’s ex-husband. Both are facing the death penalty.
The protection attorneys and prosecutors mentioned the amount of proof that hasn’t been processed but is making it a wrestle to organize for trial – which is tentatively scheduled to start in October 2025.
Among the many proof are hundreds of unredacted information, together with cellphone information, textual content messages, financial institution statements, and information from cell telephones, iPads, and laptop exhausting drives.
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Protection attorneys for each Gardner and Fernandez expressed frustration over the backlog.
“I simply wish to spotlight that what Detective Simmons has dropped at your consideration shouldn’t be one thing that you haven’t heard us saying because the very first courtroom date,” mentioned Jesse Dreicer, one in all Fernandez’s attorneys. “But it surely does spotlight how a lot discovery is on this case. The very challenge that Detective Simmons bumped into is what our workplace is working into every day of labor to do on this case.”
Dreicer mentioned once they seek for particular proof, hundreds of things are flagged, and so they need to be reviewed one after the other.
Gardner legal professional Patrick Korody advised dealing with the proof just like the feds do: with a staff and never only a single investigator.
“There must be from the state of Florida, all the state of Florida, there must be a useful resource effort on their aspect,” Korody mentioned. “In the event that they wish to use this proof at trial towards our purchasers, they need to dedicate the sources to get what must be completed underneath the regulation.”
With Simmons tapping out, Choose London Kite should assign a brand new company to sift by means of and assessment the piles of proof.
She acknowledged the problem, describing the proof backlog as a significant impediment to the case continuing easily.
“In my thoughts, that is inflicting so many issues. So many issues as a result of we have now a major quantity of knowledge that has not been gone by means of,” Kite mentioned. “Then, whether it is lastly examined, it may relate again to issues which have already been completed. Then we’d be duplicating the work.”
The decide advised assigning the assessment to a state company, such because the Florida Division of Legislation Enforcement (FDLE), or a bigger regulation enforcement company in Central or South Florida with extra sources.
Gardner and Fernandez can be again in courtroom on Jan. 6. By that date, Choose Kite expects the state and protection to have a concrete plan for reviewing the proof.
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