An investigation into the boating accident which killed Jose Fernandez and his two friends last year has concluded that the Miami Marlins pitcher was operating the vessel while drunk and high on cocaine when it crashed.
TMZ reported that this is according the findings by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which launched the investigation into the deadly accident. Fernandez's fingerprint and other DNA were found on the boat's steering wheel and the investigative report concluded that the 24-year-old's blood alcohol level was almost twice the legal limit at .147 and his blood tested positive for traces of cocaine.
As we reported, the watercraft was found by the U.S Coast Guard patrol around 3:30 a.m. on Sept. 25, on a jetty near Government Cut not far from Miami Beach. The bodies of the three men were discovered a short time later.
"Fernández operated ... with his normal faculties impaired, in a reckless manner, at an extremely high rate of speed, in the darkness of night, in an area with known navigational hazards such as rock jetties and channel markers," the report said.
The families of the other victims in the crash are now suing Fernandez's estate.