Miami-Dade prosecutors have filed a new manslaughter charge against real estate broker George Pino, whose boat crashed during a 2022 Labor Day outing, killing a teenage girl and seriously injuring another. The additional felony count, filed Thursday, comes on top of an existing vessel homicide charge, according to court records.
Both charges stem from the death of 17-year-old Luciana “Lucy” Fernandez, a high school senior at Our Lady of Lourdes Academy who died after the boat capsized near Biscayne Bay on Sept. 4, 2022. Her classmate, Katerina “Katy” Puig, now 20, suffered traumatic injuries and remains in a wheelchair, struggling with basic motor skills.
Witness accounts and alcohol allegations led to new charge
The new charge states that Pino, 54, “intentionally committed an act or acts, and/or acted with culpable negligence” that led to Fernandez’s death. Each charge carries a potential prison sentence of up to 15 years.
Prosecutors deemed the manslaughter charge appropriate after receiving new witness information. Sources familiar with the case told The Miami Herald that testimony from several teenage girls who were on the boat, including accounts of alcohol consumption hours before the crash, played a key role in the decision.
On the day of the crash, Pino’s daughter, who had just turned 18, invited 11 friends on a birthday boating trip with her parents. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) later found empty alcohol containers aboard the vessel, which flipped and threw all 14 passengers into the water. Three girls were pulled out unconscious, including Fernandez, Puig, and a third girl who later recovered.
FWC under scrutiny for not testing Pino for alcohol
In a statement provided to the Herald Friday morning, Pino’s attorney called the new charge “duplicative” and said it adds confusion rather than clarity.
“We will move to dismiss this unwarranted, redundant accusation,” said defense lawyer Howard Srebnick, who has argued the crash was a tragic accident, not a crime.
Toxicology reports from the night of the crash showed Puig had a blood alcohol level nearly double the legal limit for driving. Her family has sued George and Cecilia Pino, accusing them of supplying alcohol to minors, an allegation the couple denies.
The case has drawn scrutiny over the FWC’s handling of the investigation.
Despite serious injuries, officers did not administer a sobriety test to Pino, who admitted to drinking two beers. Training materials used by the State Attorney’s Office direct FWC investigators to pursue blood draws in such circumstances and provide a 24/7 hotline to request warrants, a step the agency failed to take.
