Defense in George Pino's deadly boat crash trial presents its case with emotional testimony from survivors

The defense in the boat crash trial of Miami real estate broker George Pino neared the end of its case Wednesday, with emotional testimony from Pino's wife and teenage survivors of the 2022 deadly boat crash. The testimony on Day 7 of the trial comes after the state rested its case Tuesday. Pino is facing charges stemming from the Sept. 4, 2022, crash, when his vessel struck a channel marker while carrying 12 teenage girls and two adults returning from an 18th birthday celebration. The crash resulted in the death of 17-year-old Lucy Fernandez.Two of Fernandez's friends, Claudia Porto Carrero and Natalia Reid, took the stand to recount the moments leading up to and immediately following the impact. Both testified that while the teenagers were celebrating, dancing, and singing, they did not see Pino consuming alcohol that day.Reid testified that she consumed two or three alcoholic beverages at the Billy's Point sandbar but did not feel impaired. Porto Carrero, a relative of Pino, stated she drank a beer and a seltzer.Porto Carrero described the chaotic aftermath of the collision to the courtroom, stating that when she opened her eyes, she saw Pino covered in blood."The first thing I saw after I opened my eyes was George. And I thought he was dead," Porto Carrero said. "I saw a lot of blood gushing."George Pino's wife provided emotional testimony as the only other adult aboard the boatCecilia Pino, the defendant's wife and the only other adult aboard the boat, provided emotional testimony about her attempts to save the teenagers despite sustaining a gash to her own forehead."I wasn't thinking of Mr. Pino," she said when asked about the immediate aftermath. "I was just thinking of the girls." She added that when she finally located her husband in the water, he appeared as "a little head bobbing by the boat."During an aggressive cross-examination, prosecutors pressed Cecilia Pino on inconsistencies in her previous statements and accused her of trying to shield her husband from liability during the investigation. The state also questioned her regarding family vacations taken in the months following the fatal accident."It wasn't your daughter who died as a result of this crash, was it?" the prosecutor asked."No," Pino replied."It was Lucy's family who lost a child. Not yours! Correct?" the prosecutor asked."Correct," Pino said.The defense also called a maritime navigation expert to the stand Wednesday. The expert testified that tidal conditions on the day of the 2022 crash differed significantly from the conditions present during the state's subsequent re-enactment of the incident.Defense attorneys informed the judge they expect to conclude their arguments by the end of Thursday.