The first week of commercial broker George Pino’s criminal trial wrapped up last week.
Pino is facing manslaughter and vessel homicide charges in the 2022 boat crash that killed 17-year-old Lucia “Lucy” Fernandez and injured ten others. The crash also caused debilitating injuries to now 21-year-old Katerina “Katy” Puig.
Pino, CEO of Doral-based State Street Realty, was driving his 29-foot-boat when it collided into a channel marker in the Florida Keys on Labor Day Weekend. He, his wife, daughter and her friends were on the boat. Prosecutors initially charged him with careless boating, which is a misdemeanor, but bumped the charges up to felonies after a witness came forward in 2024.
To say the first week of his trial was emotionally charged would be an understatement. On the first day, Miami-Dade Judge Marisa Tinkler Mendez sent jurors home early after Pino had an emotional breakdown. She warned Pino’s defense attorneys, led by Howard Srebnick, about hugging and interacting with friends and family while the jury was present.
On the second day, Lucy Fernandez’s father, Andy, testified about seeing his daughter in the hospital that evening, recognizable only by a birthmark and her necklace. He called it a parent’s “worst nightmare.”
Last week, prosecutors showed the jury the wrecked boat, as well as body camera footage from Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Lt. William Thompson. Thompson first asked Pino if the boat involved in the crash was his, but instead of answering, Pino told him that another boat threw a wave that caused him to lose control and crash into the marker.
Srebnick has argued the other boat narrative is the result of a false memory Pino formed after the accident. Srebnick said the crash was an accident, and that it does not meet the legal definition for recklessness.
Prosecutors disagree.
“This was not a momentary lapse of judgement,” Miami-Dade Assistant State Attorney Laura Adams told the jury in her opening remarks. “Lucy is dead because the defendant failed to do the basic things to do on the water … avoiding situations that can cause collisions.”
The trial is expected to resume on Monday.
What we’re thinking about: A handful of pocket listings — from $100 million to $400 million — are quietly being shopped in Miami. Did I miss any, and are these prices realistic? Send me a note at kk@therealdeal.com.
CLOSING TIME
Residential: Financier Todd Green sold his condo at the Four Seasons at the Surf Club, at 9111 Collins Avenue in Surfside, to a trust for $27.3 million. Green paid $12.4 million for the four-bedroom, four-bathroom unit in 2017.
Commercial: In Riviera Beach, the properties at 1701 and 2001 Australian Avenue, in an industrial complex, sold for $34 million. Realterm Logistics Income Properties LP, based in Annapolis, Maryland, sold the properties to the Silverman Group, based in Basking Ridge, New Jersey.
— Research by Mary Diduch
NEW TO THE MARKET
Richard Burns’ RCR Homes listed his newly built estate at 16745 Stratford Court in Southwest Ranches for $38.8 million, making it the priciest listing in Southwest Ranches, according to a press release from the lender, Vaster. The nearly 24,000-square-foot mansion has 10 bedrooms, 17 bathrooms, a 20-car garage and pool. It’s on the market with Douglas Elliman’s Marc Brandt. RCR paid $2.5 million for the 2.4-acre property in 2024.
A thing we’ve learned
A dozen of the 50 most at-risk housing markets are in Florida, according to an Attom reported by Realtor.com. The riskiest in Florida is Charlotte County, which includes Punta Gorda. Attom looked at affordability, percentage of seriously underwater mortgages, foreclosures and unemployment rates.