Articles Tagged with Trial Attorneys

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A 44-foot yacht was destroyed in a blaze that broke out at a Key Largo marina ahead of the July Fourth weekend, according to officials with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.

The fire broke out Thursday at the Anchorage Resort & Yacht Club in Key Largo. Thankfully, MCSO officials reported, no one was on board the boat at the time of the fire and no injuries were reported. The blaze appeared to have been contained to the singular vessel and no further damage was reported.

No cause of the fire has been publicly released. Photos posted online by the MCSO show firefighters battling the blaze and the singed vessel immediately following the fire.

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At least one woman was taken to the hospital, and another person was injured after a boat crashed into a Florida Keys channel over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, according to local media.

The crash happened Sunday, July 5, around 3:20 p.m., reporters with The Miami Herald said. The vessel that the two were on crashed into the Harris Gap Channel Bridge on Sugarloaf Key. At least one other person was aboard the vessel at the time of the crash and was injured, according to Local 10 News.

The woman, whose name has not been released as of Monday, July 6, was taken to a hospital on the mainland for treatment. A spokesperson for the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) told reporters that she had non-life-threatening injuries. It is unclear whether the second person required transport to a local hospital.

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“Florida is the boating capital of the world, but sadly, it is also the boating fatality capital of the world.”

These are the words of Partner Justin B. Shapiro of Leesfield & Partners. With decades of practice representing the injured individuals and grieving families of those involved in some of Florida’s most horrific boating and water-related incidents, our attorneys understand the magnitude of this pressing safety issue. From a young diver and father-to-be whose life was prematurely snuffed out by a negligent boater to the loss of a child’s leg while aboard a vessel, our skilled trial attorneys have seen just about every injury that can occur on the water. With this experience comes an increased vigilance toward the dangers, and the urgency to create positive change.

Last July, when Lucy’s Law—legislation named in honor of 17-year-old Luciana ‘Lucy’ Fernandez, who died in the 2022 Boca Chita boat crash—went into effect, our attorneys applauded the move and saw it as a sign for increased vigilance and safety on the water.

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An Indian tourist has been identified as the man who died Wednesday, March 16, while scuba diving, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.

Abhinav Lamba, 43, was found in distress by a commercial dive crew on Molasses Reef at around 11 a.m. Wednesday, March 16. The crew brought him onto their boat and performed CPR while taking him to shore. Emergency responders took him to Mariners Hospital in Tavernier where he later died.

An autopsy will be performed to determine a cause and manner of death, however, officials told reporters that they do not suspect foul play.

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A 50-year-old man has died after losing consciousness following a scuba dive at a Key West shipwreck over the weekend, according to local media.

Nicholas James Strazzulla, a certified diving instructor of Inverness, Florida, lost consciousness following the 150-to-200-foot dive to the USNS Hoyt S. Vanderberg. The former missile tracking ship was intentionally sunk nearly seven miles south of Key West in 2009 to be used as an artificial reef, according to the Miami Herald.

He was brought back to the dive boat and others in the group he was with performed CPR on him, officials told local media. He died at the Lower Keys Medical Center.

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As e-bike regulations in Florida continue to evolve, riders face a patchwork of questions concerning liability and fault, especially in the Florida Keys.

Thanks to the provisions already in effect with Senate Bill 462, which took effect in July 2025, local governments may create minimum age limits, among other regulations. This allows every city to create their own standards based on their local traffic and safety concerns, including setting a minimum age limit. But, as legislators consider House Bill 243, which aims to establish statewide regulations, the rules could shift once more.

HB 243 is still under review, however, if it passes in its current form, it could go into effect by July 1, 2027. HB 243 would prohibit certain high-powered “electric motorcycles” from being operated by people under 16 and would require a license to operate Class 3 e-bikes.

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Community members and their local fire department gathered over the weekend to honor a 17-year-old, who had dreamed of becoming a firefighter, after his diving death in the Florida Keys.

Cameron Ruwe died while on a family trip off Grassy Key on Saturday, Sept. 13, just a week shy of his birthday, according to reporting from NBC 6 South Florida. He had been using a hookah rig, a surface-supplied air system, while he went underwater. He was given CPR before emergency responders took him to Fishermen’s Hospital in Marathon, Florida, where he was pronounced dead.

His stepmother, Katherine Zaensi, said Cameron was rarely seen without a smile and that he “never, ever, ever had a bad day.”

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A 17-year-old teenager died over the weekend while diving using a hookah rig in the Florida Keys, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.

The boy, later identified as Cameron Isaiah Ruwe, was diving with several others on Saturday using a hookah rig — a type of diving that uses a surface-based compressor to deliver air through a hose. The group and their vessel were near Grassy Key around 1:30 p.m. when Cameron attempted to swim back to his boat and “went underwater,” according to local media.

The people who were with him attempted to perform CPR before emergency responders arrived. He was taken to Fisherman’s Community Hospital in Marathon where he was pronounced dead.

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A Fort Lauderdale woman faces multiple charges after police say she led them on a high-speed chase Saturday in the Florida Keys.

Lianet Rodriguez, 35, was charged with felony fleeing and eluding police, a misdemeanor moving traffic violation, driving under the influence and resisting an officer.

The chase was sparked by multiple 911 calls that reported a car was driving into oncoming traffic and passing on the shoulder near mile marker 21, according to reporting from local news outlets. Mile Marker 21 is on Cudjoe Key.

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A federal grand jury charged a Florida Keys boat captain in relation to a parasailing accident that resulted in the death of a woman and the injury of two children in 2022.

Daniel Couch, 52, was charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office with one count of seaman’s manslaughter. The charge stems from Memorial Day 2022 when Couch took out 33-year-old Supraja Alaparthi, her son, 10, and her 9-year-old nephew on a parasailing excursion in a 31-foot boat. Alaparthi died from her injuries and her nephew was severely injured. Her son suffered minor injuries, according to local media.

The family was already in the air around 5 p.m. on May 30, 2022, when a strong storm gust caused an issue, causing Couch and at least one other employee on the boat to lower the group back to the water. The National Weather Service had predicted high winds, heavy rain and thunderstorms before the group set out on the water. The gust was so strong that the “parasail also risked dragging the boat,” according to reporting from The Miami Herald. Couch did not steer the boat side-to-side or attempt another technique to lessen the wind underneath the parasail. Instead, he cut the cable tethering the parasail harness to the boat with a knife.

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