Flanked by law enforcement officers, Kirsten Bridegan displays a box of children's supplies with daughter Bexley and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier. Boxes like these are now in police stations across the country. | Noah Hertz, Jacksonville Today
Published on March 27, 2025 at 3:55 pm
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Florida’s attorney general visited the St. Johns Sheriff’s Office on Thursday to acknowledge Kirsten Bridegan, whose husband was killed in 2022, with the state’s Back the Blue Award for her children’s advocacy work alongside law enforcement officers.
In the wake of her husband’s killing in 2022, Bridegan has committed herself to a project she calls “Bexley Boxes,” named for their then-2-year-old daughter.Â
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When Jared Bridegan was shot and killed, his daughter Bexley was taken to the police station without a guardian to keep her company.
Now, nearly 70 boxes of kids toys and supplies bearing Bexley’s name are in law enforcement offices across Florida and the rest of the country.
“While we know these guys — they’re the most loving and caring people, they’re there for us — for a little kid, it can be intimidating,” Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said. “Kirsten, when many people could have shut down, could have found it hard to function, she found it in herself to put together a really creative idea.”
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A tearful Kirsten Bridegan, with Bexley in her arms, thanked the attorney general and law enforcement officers and officials from St. Johns County for working with her on her project.
“This is a huge honor, but really this isn’t an award just for us. This is for every single person that has helped us on this journey,” she said. “We want to continue to do our part to give back, because we know what it’s like to be in that darkest hour, and we want to make sure that others’ darkest hours are a little bit brighter.”
The Bridegan case is still continuing — two of the key suspects in the case have pleaded not guilty to Jared Bridegan’s killing, and they will come before juries later this year. Another witness in the case, who had previously confessed to killing Bridegan, has since claimed innocence.
Other recipients of the Back the Blue Award include law enforcement officers from across the state who helped people in need, and organizations that work closely with law enforcement agencies like the Florida Association of Crime Stoppers.
