WASHTENAW COUNTY, Mich. – The woman charged in the double murder of a foster family in Washtenaw County was bound over to stand trial on all charges, and new details were revealed during her preliminary examination.
Shuvonne Vinson appeared in court for a preliminary examination on Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, before Washtenaw County Judge Cedric Simpson in 14A District Court.
The woman, along with Gregory Callhan, 37, and Keith Finley, 60, were charged in connection with the murder of Jennifer Bernhard, 48, and Stevie Smith, 74, and the attempted murder of Jeffrey Bernhard, 53, on Nollar Bend Road in Northfield Township on Jan. 1, 2025.
They are also accused of kidnapping the family’s 10-year-old daughter and their 4-year-old foster daughter. The foster child is Vinson’s biological daughter.
During Vinson’s preliminary examination, Bernhard was the first to testify, and some new details were revealed.
The foster father was shot during the attack. After he regained consciousness after being shot the second time, he was able to get up and go to the neighbor’s house and ask for help.
One new detail shared during his testimony revolved around allegations that the Bernard family didn’t let Vinson’s daughter believe in God.
Bernhard testified that while Vinson was yelling at him and his wife before they had been shot, she accused his wife of not letting her daughter believe in God and called them evil and demonic because of it.
When the prosecution asked Bernhard if these allegations were true, he said, “Absolutely not.”
“The irony of it is it’s the opposite, because my father-in-law is an ordained pastor, my wife, up until she became a full-time mother, she also was an ordained minister with the Assemblies of God,” said Bernhard. “We attend church every Sunday morning and every Wednesday night. We brought both girls to church. They were involved in kids’ church and Sunday school.”
The foster father also said that every night, they would sit down and read the Bible, and read one or two books with each girl before they went to bed.
He and his wife also would sing Christian songs to their foster daughter as they tucked her into bed each night to help her fall asleep.
Bernhard also shared that while he was afraid during the attack, he wasn’t as terrified as one might think, and he attributes that to his faith.
The foster father said that he and his wife were trying to address the accusations and answer Vinson’s questions calmly to de-escalate the situation.
None of what they said helped, though, and it seemed to agitate Vinson more, according to his testimony.
Vinson was bound over to stand trial on all charges. This comes after Callhan and Finley were bound over in April.
A pretrial hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 1, 2025.