State rests in George Pino’s boat-crash trial after testimony about Lucy’s death

Prosecutors rested their case Monday in the trial of Doral real estate broker George Pino, who is charged in a boat crash that killed a 17-year-old girl.

Before prosecutor Laura Adams announced that the state wrapped up its case, a forensic pathologist testified about the nature of 17-year-old Luciana “Lucy” Fernandez’s injuries.

Dr. David Fintan Garavan, formerly with the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner’s Office, testified that Lucy’s official cause of death was drowning. But the girl, he said, also suffered significant blunt force trauma from the impact of the boat crashing into the steel channel marker.

Lucy’s parents, Andres and Melissa Fernandez, teared up as the forensic pathologist spoke about the nature of Lucy’s injuries.

Also on Monday, boating expert Lt. Paul Alber testified that Pino traveled the length of three football fields — going 47 mph — in the nine seconds before the crash. Alber walked jurors through Pino’s trajectory on the day of the crash in a series of maps created from GPS data.

Alber inspected Pino’s 29-foot Robalo and said he was contacted by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the lead investigating agency, the day after the crash to analyze the boat’s GPS. Pino, he added, frequently traversed Cutter Bank, according to historical GPS data, and should have been aware of the location of the channel marker before he plowed into it.

Pino, 54, is on trial on charges of manslaughter and vessel homicide in the Sept. 4, 2022, boat crash. Lucy Fernandez was killed, and Katerina “Katy” Puig, now 21, another passenger, was left with physical and neurological disabilities. Dozens of Lucy’s loved ones and Pino’s supporters tightly packed both sides of the large courtroom.

After prosecutors rested, the defense made a motion for acquittal, which allows the judge to find Pino not guilty without sending the case to a jury. Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Marisa Tinkler Mendez said she will rule on the motion Tuesday morning.

If the judge denies the request, the defense will begin presenting its case.

Alber, who currently works for the Palm Beach Police Department, told jurors he was an FWC patrol officer from 1993 to 2006. He also said he is a boating instructor and GPS forensics training program manager for a national boating safety organization.

Alber said he participated in an accident reconstruction with lead investigator Lt. William Thompson. He said he used GPS to leave buoys in the two last track points before the crash. He also said he placed cameras on the right side of the vessel and on the channel marker.

The footage captured by the cameras was played for the jury in court. From several perspectives, the steel marker was in plain view, and the vessel is seen barreling straight toward the marker.

The GPS data, Alber said, also indicates the boat was still moving after the impact. Prosecutor Laura Adams said that data shows Pino did not have a “kill switch,” which shuts the engine off if the operator is not at the helm.

When on the water, boaters are required to follow navigational rules, including if they are traveling through a narrow channel like Cutter Bank, Alber said. Among boaters’ responsibilities are maintaining a proper lookout for hazards; operating at a safe speed; using “all means” to identify the risk of collision; and taking “early and substantial action” to avoid a crash.

When operating a boat, operators are supposed to stay to the right, Alber said. Pino was on the wrong side of the channel when the Robalo rammed into the steel channel marker, sending himself and all 13 of his passengers into the water.

The jury last week observed the badly damaged boat at the FWC storage lot in North Miami. The jurors were also shown drone footage of an accident re-enactment completed by a Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office crime scene detective.

READ MORE: George Pino jurors see wrecked boat in person and view re-enactment video

Holding a model of the boat and channel marker in his hands, Alber testified about the impact of the crash, saying the girls who were sitting closest to the impact were more likely to sustain serious injuries. When asked by Adams, Alber said there is no reason why a person operating a Robalo would not be able to see what is in front of them.

Alber also said having 14 people on the vessel “would be a tight squeeze,” although the Robalo is yacht rated — meaning that it has no capacity limits. Alber also said having 10 girls sitting in the front added around 1,000 pounds to the bow and likely affected the boat’s speed.

When asked by defense attorney Howard Srebnick, Alber said he didn’t consider tide a factor in the crash. Srebnick also questioned Alber about how the view of the channel marker Pino slammed into was obstructed by other markers.

The defense admitted photos of the channel that the prosecutor argued were inaccurate because Alber said they appeared to be taken from the middle of the channel, despite Pino being on the left side before the crash occurred.

Alber testified that the marker should have been fully visible. And while questioning Alber, Adams pointed out how Pino told investigators that he was approaching the last channel marker when the crash occurred.

Medical examiner testimony

When paramedics brought Lucy to Kendall Regional Hospital around 8 p.m. on the day of the crash, she had significant injuries from first responders’ intense and rapid attempts at keeping her alive with CPR as they rushed her to shore on a police boat, Fintan Garavan said on the stand.

The CPR kept Lucy alive until she got to the hospital, and doctors were able to restart her heart and place a tube down her throat to get oxygen into her lungs, Fintan Garavan said.

But Lucy also had injuries all over her body that the doctor said were consistent with her being thrown from the boat at high speed and hitting an object with great force, the doctor said.

Fintan Garavan said it is likely the impact rendered Lucy unconscious, leading her to being trapped underneath Pino’s boat, where she was unable to breathe.

Lucy had cuts and bruises to her head, face, arms, legs and back, Fintan Garavan testified. Doctors found bruising on the inside of her mouth, including on her tongue and gums. Lucy was also hemorrhaging from her ears and nose. Her body was swollen from fluid seeping into all of her tissues, he added.

Blood tests taken when Lucy was in the hospital came back negative for alcohol, the doctor testified, although two girls who were on the boat testified that they drank several alcohol beverages while at the sandbar.

Miami Herald staff writer David Goodhue contributed to this report

This story was originally published June 15, 2026 at 1:11 PM.

Grethel Aguila

Miami Herald

Grethel covers courts and the criminal justice system for the Miami Herald. She graduated from the University of Florida (Go Gators!), speaks Spanish and Arabic and loves animals, traveling, basketball and good storytelling. Grethel also attends law school part time.