MIAMI — Shortly before jury selection was set to take place Monday, a Miami-Dade judge ruled that statements real estate mogul George Pino made to investigators following a deadly 2022 boat crash will be allowed at trial.

Attorneys for Pino, 55, had sought to get those statements thrown out. They had also tried, unsuccessfully, to have the entire case ― centering on the death of 17-year-old Lucy Fernandez ― thrown out or moved out of Miami-Dade County.

Judge Marisa Tinkler Mendez also denied another defense request to have a 12-person jury instead of a six-person jury.

Authorities said Pino, then 52, was behind the wheel of a 29-foot Robalo boat in the early evening hours of Sept. 4, 2022 when he lost control and slammed it into a channel marker near Boca Chita Key, killing Fernandez. Two other girls were seriously hurt, including 17-year-old Katerina Puig.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys continued to clash over whether Pino was impaired, including debating over empty beer bottles found on the boat. During Monday’s hearing, Pino’s attorney, Howard Srebnick, brought up testimony from Fernandez’s father.

“Mr. Fernandez testified that he himself had consumed alcohol at the sandbar, as did his spouse,” Srebnick said. “That they left the sandbar before Mr. Pino did. They left Lucy at the sandbar with Mr. Pino, and of course, would never have had Lucy go on board a vessel with Mr. Pino if he had thought that Mr. Pino was impaired and by his testimony he did not observe any impairment of Mr. Pino.”

Pino, facing charges of both manslaughter and vessel homicide, could spend up to three decades in prison if convicted of both charges.

Jury selection was set to begin in the afternoon hours Monday.

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