A South Florida family is one step closer to having their mission accomplished, years after their daughter was killed in a boating crash.
“Lucy’s Law,” a bill being considered by the Florida legislature in the final weeks of their session, is headed to the state senate floor after passing various chamber panels.
“Yes and by your vote SB628 is reported favorably,” said a state senator.
If passed, the bill would increase penalties for reckless boating, require safety training, and require a license for all boaters. Additionally, it would require blood tests without probable cause in cases of specified boating accidents.
Melissa Fernandez, mother of Lucy Fernandez, a teen killed in a horrifying boat crash in 2022, said this is a great step forward for boating safety.
“Lucy’s Law is our first step forward. This isn’t just about one tragedy, this is about decades of data, countless of preventable crashes, and years of missed opportunities to make our waters safer,” she told the senate panel.
The boat crash also critically injured Lucy’s classmate. Both were students at Our Lady of Lourdes Academy.
Since that tragedy, Lucy’s parents, Melissa and Andy Fernandez, have lobbied state lawmakers to tighten the rules on boating.
These years-long actions ended in the creation of “Lucy’s Law.”
“We are not here today to dwell on what is broken. We are here because we believe we can fix it,” said Melissa.
The crash occurred after George Pino, a prominent real estate figure, took a group of teens out on a boat to celebrate his daughter’s 18th birthday.
The boat hit a concrete channel marker and everyone was ejected from the boat on impact.
Pino told responding officers he was trying to avoid the wake of a larger boat.
Although there were half-gone bottles of liquor and over 60 cans of beer found on the boat, officers reported that Pino was not impaired, though he did not consent to a blood alcohol test.
“I’d like to ask permission to draw your blood. It’s up to you completely,” body camera footage shows officers telling Pino.
“No, I had two beers…” said the officer on body camera footage.
“And it’s not illegal to boat and drive,” said the officer on body camera footage.
After an almost year-long investigation, Pino was eventually charged with felony homicide. He’s pleaded not guilty.
The Fernandez family hopes this bill spares parents the pain they had to go through by preventing more boat tragedies.
“This law holds people accountable when their decisions put others at risk and protects everyone on the water by raising the standard of what it means to be a responsible boater,” said Melissa.
The bill passed the Florida Senate Fiscal Policy Committee 19 to 0. It now heads to the full state senate for a final vote.
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