Holmes Beach man gets prison in Valentine’s Day fatal stabbing of co-worker in bucket lift
A man convicted of stabbing his co-worker to death while the two worked to paint a condo building in downtown Bradenton was sentenced Friday, State Attorney Ed Brodsky said in a news release.
Jessie Hernandez, 41, from Holmes Beach, has been convicted of murder in the second degree with a weapon. He was sentenced to 35 years in prison, followed by five years of probation.
The crime happened on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14, 2020.
Hernandez believed Rene Balditt, 48, was having an affair with his girlfriend and decided to confront him while the two worked side-by-side in bucket lift, almost 40 feet off the ground, the release said.
Hernandez stabbed Balditt multiple times in the neck, killing him.
He lowered the lift and called the police to admit to the stabbing.
He then walked and met Bradenton police halfway between the condominium building and their downtown headquarters to turn himself in.
There were several witnesses to the stabbing, the Bradenton Herald previously reported, and police said Hernandez used a 6-inch-long blade knife to kill Balditt.
Hernandez’s criminal history includes multiple battery convictions.
Most recently, Hernandez was granted an early termination of his probation for charges of obtaining food with intent to defraud and resisting an officer without violence, according to court records. On Jan. 19, 2019, Bradenton Beach police were called to the Wicked Catina because Hernandez was drunk, trying to leave without paying his bill and had attacked a staff member.
When police arrived, the officer said that Hernandez became belligerent, lunged at him and said, “What are you going to do about it (expletive).” Hernandez had to be pepper sprayed before police could place him in handcuffs.
