MIAMI (WSVN) - George Pino, a prominent figure in Miami’s real estate industry, was absent in court while his defense attorney entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf during a recent Zoom call. The charges stem from a fatal boating accident that occurred on Labor Day in 2022.
Pino was at the helm of his 29-foot Robalo boat when it collided with a channel marker off Boca Chita. The impact threw Pino, his wife, and 12 teenage girls into the water.
“Do you have an update on any…?” said Pino to the officer, captured in recently released body camera footage of him speaking to investigators.
“They all went to the same spot… The medical staff won’t give an update until my guys get there,” the official responded.
The accident resulted in the unfortunate death of 17-year-old Lucy Fernandez and left 18-year-old Katy Puig permanently disabled. Both girls were seniors at Our Lady of Lourdes Academy in Southwest Miami-Dade.
“It’s my daughter’s birthday and those are all her friends,” continued Pino in the video.
That night, Pino, bleeding and bandaged, explained to officers what had happened.
“I was concerned when we were going through there…” he said. “We were going through the last marker, there was a boat coming through, which was bigger. So the waves, I was veering to the right to cut into the waves and the wheel, I guess when it hit one of the waves, the wheel turned a little bit nad I lost control and I think I turned.”
Since then, the families of the victims have called out the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission on what they believe are inconsistencies in their investigation.
In August, the State Attorney’s Office filed three misdemeanor charges against Pino.
FWC officials discovered over 60 empty cans and bottles of alcohol on the boat, along with an empty champagne bottle and a partially empty bottle of alcohol. Pino refused to provide a blood sample, and responding officers reported no signs of impairment.
The family’s attorney, Brent Reitman, sent out a statement in response to Pino’s not-guilty plea, which reads as follows: “… Entering a plea of not guilty after receiving the unjustified privilege of facing charges which amount to a ‘slap on the wrist’ (where any other citizen would have been charged with DUI manslaughter carrying a mandatory prison sentence) is patently offensive.”
A status hearing is scheduled in approximately two weeks, with a trial expected to commence as early as November. Simultaneously, the families of the victims have filed civil lawsuits against Pino.
Copyright 2025 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.