A Miami-Dade County jury found George Pino not guilty in the death of 17-year-old Luciana “Lucy” Fernandez after less than two hours of deliberation Monday.
The six-member jury acquitted the Doral-based commercial real estate broker on manslaughter and boat vessel homicide charges stemming from a boat crash that claimed Fernandez’s life four years ago. The accident seriously injured three other people, but Pino has not been charged with crimes related to their injuries.
Over Labor Day weekend in 2022, Pino was behind the wheel of his 29-foot Robalo Center Console when the boat barreled into a concrete channel marker, causing it to capsize and sending all 17 occupants, including Fernandez, into the water. She drowned, and another teen, Katerina “Katy” Puig, who is now 21, was severely injured with physical and neurological disabilities.
Pino had taken his wife, their daughter and 11 of her friends on a boat excursion to Elliott Key. The group was celebrating the daughter’s 18th birthday.
After the verdict was read, a sobbing Pino clasped his hands together, looked up and silently said, “thank you.” He then hugged his attorneys and his loved ones in the courtroom, including his wife Cecilia Pino, who wept loudly. Fernandez’s parents, Andres “Andy” Fernandez and Melissa Fernandez, did not show any emotions.
The verdict came after hours of closing arguments by Miami-Dade Assistant State Attorney Laura Adams and Pino’s defense lawyer, Howard Srebnick.
Adams urged jurors to focus on what she described as Pino’s “complete lack” of responsibility as captain of the vessel, arguing his decisions on the water directly led to Fernandez’s death.
“He was worried about being the fun dad, the cool dad — not the responsible dad,” Adams said. “And that is why Lucy is dead.”
Prosecutors contended Pino ignored basic navigational rules while speeding through a narrow channel after a day of partying at a popular sandbar. Adams pointed to GPS data and expert testimony indicating the boat veered outside the channel and accelerated to high speeds — behavior she characterized as reckless given the number of teenage passengers onboard.
“This tragedy was completely preventable,” Adams told jurors. “No one but this defendant decided the speed. No one but this defendant decided the direction.”
She accused Pino of repeatedly lying about the circumstances of the crash and downplaying his alcohol consumption to avoid accountability. Although he was not charged with boating under the influence, Adams suggested his statements lacked credibility and argued that even limited drinking contributed to impaired judgment.
The prosecution framed the outing as a chaotic scene fueled by alcohol and poor planning with Pino allegedly rushing back to Ocean Reef ahead of a party he had spent $2,000 organizing. Adams likened the risks of boating to riding unsecured in the back of a pickup truck, emphasizing the absence of seat belts or other protections.
“When people like this defendant do not take seriously their responsibility … catastrophe can happen,” she said.
Srebnick countered that the state failed to meet the high legal threshold required to convict Pino of a crime, arguing the evidence at most showed ordinary negligence — not the “gross and flagrant” conduct required for manslaughter or vessel homicide.
“We are here because the government wants to brand Mr. Pino a criminal,” Srebnick said.
He emphasized that recklessness under Florida law requires proof of a “conscious and intentional indifference” to human life, not a momentary lapse in attention. Comparing the legal standard to a “flagrant foul” in basketball, Srebnick argued jurors must distinguish between an accident and truly egregious conduct.
“Not every mistake, even a serious one, is a crime,” he said.
Srebnick also pushed back on the prosecution’s focus on alcohol, noting no witness testified that Pino appeared impaired and that consuming two beers over several hours is legal while operating a vessel.
“Assertions are not evidence,” he said, accusing prosecutors of asking jurors to speculate.
He further argued that conditions on the water were calm and that none of the passengers expressed concern about the boat’s speed. The crash, he said, stemmed from a brief period of inattention — not deliberate recklessness.
The defense highlighted medical testimony that Pino suffered a concussion and temporary memory loss from the impact, explaining inconsistencies in his recollection of events.
Jurors were asked to weigh emotional testimony about the fatal injuries against the legal standard required for conviction. Srebnick acknowledged the “heartbreaking” loss but warned against allowing sympathy to influence the verdict.
“We don’t judge someone based on the outcome alone,” he said. “The state must prove a crime — not ask you to guess.”
