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A judge from Broward formally sentenced Jason Banegas to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder of police officer Yandy Chirino, a 28-year-old Cuban-American, committed in Hollywood, Florida, when Banegas was just 18 years old.
According to a report from Miami Herald, the sentence was handed down by Judge Ernest Kollra of the Broward Circuit Court in Fort Lauderdale, following the recommendation that a 12-person jury issued in December after less than two hours of deliberation, dismissing the death penalty.
Banegas, who is now 23 years old, fatally shot Chirino during a struggle in the Emerald Hills neighborhood of Hollywood on October 17, 2021.
According to the prosecution, Chirino —with four years of service in the Hollywood Police Department— confronted Banegas when he found him on a bicycle checking cars without a key in block 4000 of North Hills Drive and attempted to arrest him.
The officer was shot twice in the face and rushed to Memorial Regional Hospital, where he died hours later.
Chirino had the day off that Sunday, but he was covering an extra shift; Banegas, on the other hand, had recently been released from a "high-risk" detention center and had a criminal record since he was 12 years old.
Since his arrest, Banegas confessed that he was stealing from cars and claimed to the detectives that he fired during a failed suicide attempt, not intending to kill the officer.
During the trial, the prosecution argued that Banegas should receive the death penalty because he deliberately attacked a law enforcement officer.
The defense, led by attorney Lien Lafargue, pleaded for mercy from the jury, citing the defendant's difficult childhood, characterized by abuse, neglect, and violence.
In October 2025, during the jury selection for his trial, Banegas unexpectedly pleaded guilty to the ten charges against him, including first-degree murder with a firearm.
In January 2026, he attempted to withdraw that statement, claiming that his lawyers pressured him by saying his family would be deported and that he would be executed within five years.
The judge Kollra denied that request last Thursday, April 3, after more than two hours of testimony.
This Wednesday, in addition to the life sentence for murder, Banegas was sentenced to 40 additional years in prison for a series of car thefts.
Neither Banegas nor the relatives and supporters of Chirino —who crowded the courtroom— made any statements during the brief sentencing hearing.
Chirino was born in Havana, arrived in the United States as a child and became a U.S. citizen at the age of 10. He joined the Hollywood Police Department in 2017 and was named "Officer of the Month" in June 2020.
Her sister Yaily Chirino summarized her legacy at the funeral held on November 1, 2021, at the FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, which was attended by thousands of people: "She died doing what she loved: helping others."
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