The George Pino verdict came on June 22, 2026, when a jury found Pino not guilty of manslaughter or vessel homicide in the 2022 boat crash case off Boca Chita Key in Biscayne Bay. The decision closed a Miami-Dade trial tied to a crash that killed 17-year-old Lucy Fernandez and left 21-year-old Katy Puig with permanent disabilities.
Howard Srebnick, Pino’s lead attorney, said the defense had maintained from the beginning that the events of September 4, 2022, were “a tragic accident, not a crime.” He also said the testimony showed Pino was not under the influence, was not operating the vessel recklessly, and did what he could to protect passengers after the crash.
June 22 in Miami-Dade
The jury consisted of five men and one woman. The verdict came after eight days of testimony, in a case the defense had tried to move out of Miami-Dade because of extensive media coverage. The jury heard from Fernandez’s father, Cecilia Pino, first responders, medical experts and boating experts, and saw body camera footage of the aftermath.
Jurors also left the courtroom to observe the boat involved in the crash. Pino did not testify.
Lucy Fernandez and Katy Puig
The crash happened on September 4, 2022, and left two young women with sharply different outcomes. Fernandez died at 17. Puig, who was 21, suffered injuries that left her with permanent disabilities.
Those facts framed the prosecution’s case and the defense response. Howard Srebnick said eyewitness accounts showed no signs of impairment. Lead prosecutor Laura Adams, by contrast, accused Pino in the courtroom of muttering, “it happens, it happens,” after jurors were dismissed for the weekend.
State of Florida vs. George Pino
The jury rejected the State of Florida’s manslaughter and vessel homicide charges. In practical terms, the verdict means the panel did not accept the criminal theory that Pino’s conduct met the legal standard for those offenses, even after hearing the testimony and viewing the crash evidence.
For the families, the case now ends with no conviction in State of Florida vs. George Pino. The record left by the trial still centers on the crash itself, the death of Lucy Fernandez, and the lasting injuries to Katy Puig.
