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Arieana Gibbs, 22, was ruled incompetent to stand trial in December. She faces multiple charges in the stabbing that left the priest with life-threatening injuries.
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — A 22-year-old woman accused of stabbing a St. Augustine priest in October 2024 is due back in court in August after being ruled competent, court records show. This comes after she was ruled incompetent to stand trial in December.
Judge R. Lee Smith signed a court order on May 29, ruling Arieana Gibbs competent.
Gibbs faces charges of attempted second-degree murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, felony battery, burglary of a dwelling or conveyance and petit theft in connection to the stabbing that left Father Matt Marino of Trinity Parish Church with life-threatening injuries.
On Oct. 23, 2024, the St. Augustine Police Department alerted the public of heavy police presence in the downtown area while they searched for a female suspect in the stabbing, later identified as Gibbs.
Police said the incident occurred around 8 a.m. near the intersection of San Marco and Rohde avenues. Gibbs was arrested around 10:30 a.m., a little further south in St. Johns County.
The police department said the attack appeared to be “random,” and that Gibbs and Marino did not know each other.
Marino spent six days in Jacksonville’s HCA Florida Memorial Hospital with a severed pulmonary artery and a collapsed lung. The Episcopal Diocese of Florida said Marino was stabbed while having coffee.
Gibbs was ruled incompetent back on Dec. 19, 2024. Smith signed a court order saying Gibbs has a mental illness that interferes with her ability to consult with her lawyer “with a reasonable degree of rational understanding.” Smith also said in the order that Gibbs has no “rational or factual understanding” of the court proceedings against her and that there is a “substantial likelihood” she would be a danger to herself or others without treatment.
In the May court order from Smith, the judge ruled Gibbs competent after reviewing a competency evaluation report from the Department of Children and Families. The order does not state when the follow-up evaluation on Gibbs was done.
Gibbs is due back in court for a pre-trial hearing on Aug. 14, according to court records.
Watch below First Coast News’ exclusive interview with Marino talking about the stabbing.

