Three were ejected from his boat. He now faces manslaughter charge.
On the night of July 17, five friends were on a 35-foot open fisherman boat heading from Naples to the Florida Keys for a weekend of fishing.
When they reached Cape Sable, the southernmost point of mainland Florida, they encountered a severe thunderstorm that made the boat’s driver, Brandon Werning, 27, question whether he should proceed with the journey to Islamorada.
“The weather came out of nowhere when we got toward Cape Sable,” Werning said Friday. “It went from yellow to red and then to purple on the radar. It was more than just a thunderstorm.”
He decided to drop anchor on the beach at Cape Sable hoping the storm would pass. Engine problems causing the boat to come off plane and issues with the gauges added to Werning’s concerns.
But, according to a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission report, he decided to make his way to the island chain at the request of his friends on the vessel, first checking the battery and throttle connections.
A fatal decision
That decision proved deadly for one of the passengers on the Contender — 25-year-old Sean Scott Hurley.
As they neared Islamorada from the Gulf of Mexico, winds were blowing between 26 and 31 mph, with even stronger gusts. The seas were rough with 2- to 6-foot waves pushing Werning’s boat, making it difficult for him to maneuver it, according to the FWC report.
And, it was so dark and rainy, he could not see more than a foot in front of him, FWC Investigator Brittany Mobley wrote in her report.
Nevertheless, Werning got the boat back on plane, traveling 50 knots as he made a sharp turn to enter Yacht Channel, about five miles north of the Long Key Bridge in the Middle Keys.
“As they turned into the channel, Werning also stated they took a large wave over the side of the boat and the wind was blowing so hard it was physically pushing the boat,” Mobley wrote.
Three thrown from the boat
During the turn, Werning lost control of the boat, and three of his passengers, including Hurley, were ejected.
Werning and another passenger were thrown to the stern of the vessel, striking the deck. While still in the water, Hurley was run over and fatally wounded by the spinning blades of the engine’s propellers, Mobley said.
According to the initial FWC incident report, Werning, who lives in Marco Island, helped everyone back on board, but it was too late to save Hurley.
This week, Werning turned himself in to face a charge of “vessel homicide,” a second-degree felony listed as negligent manslaughter on his county jail booking information. A judge signed his arrest warrant Thursday. Werning posted a $150,000 bond and was released later in the day.
He faces a maximum 15-year prison sentence if convicted.
Speed of boat was an issue: FWC says
Mobley said in her probable cause affidavit that she recommended the charge because of Werning’s decision to continue on the trip after finding safe harbor on the Cape Sable beach, and his decision to approach Yacht Channel at a high rate of speed in dark and stormy conditions.
“Werning failed to maintain a safe speed by operating at a high rate of speed and not taking into account the maneuverability of the vessel with special reference to stopping distance and turning ability in prevailing conditions,” Mobley wrote. “He failed to appropriately utilize his working radar system while he was operating in restricted visibility and by not taking into account the wind, the weather, sea and current. He failed to account for the state of visibility from the heavy sea spray on his isinglass.”
Reached by phone Friday, Werning denied he was negligent and said there was nothing he could have done differently to prevent what happened.
“There was no negligence that evening, and everyone on board knows that,” Werning said. He also vowed to dispute the charge in court.
“We’re going to put up a big fight,” he said.
He said the charge took him by surprise because he hadn’t been in touch with anyone from the FWC since the summer, and all the officers with whom he spoke the evening of the accident seemed sympathetic because of the severity of the storm. He accused Mobley of being intent on finding a crime in the incident.
“She must think she has something she doesn’t have, but she wasn’t there that evening,” Werning said.
He said he and his friends are still mourning the loss of Hurley, whom he’s known since high school, and bonded with during many fishing trips for mahi mahi in the Keys.
“We were friends because of the water. Every weekend, we were on the water to fish,” Werning said.
FWC spokesman Officer Bobby Dube defended Mobley’s conclusion, noting the charges were brought after she presented her findings to prosecutors with the Monroe County State Attorney’s Office.
“It’s not just the FWC saying he killed someone and we’re going to charge him,” Dube said. “She presented the facts and the State Attorney’s Office has to agree to the charges.”
This story was originally published December 11, 2020 at 7:13 PM.
