ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – The man who was facing a charge for carrying a firearm into a prohibited place after a manslaughter charge was dismissed in 2022 received the maximum sentence Thursday morning.
Circuit Judge R. Lee Smith in St. Johns County sentenced Luis Casado to 60 days in jail following the shooting death of Adam Amoia in St. Augustine in 2021.
The shooting happened in May 2021 outside the now-closed Dos Gatos bar in downtown St. Augustine and was caught on surveillance video.
“This court certainly in our prior ruling I want to make sure it’s known it’s not a reflection on what kind of man Adam Amoia was,” Smith said. “Mr. Casado walked into two cars that night with a loaded firearm in his pocket.”
Casado did not speak at the hearing.
In December, Smith ruled that Casado acted in self-defense under Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law, so the manslaughter charge was dropped.
Amoia’s family and friends also attended the hearing to provide impact statements.
“Adam, I love you forever, and I will never stop fighting for you. Justice for Adam,” his cousin Rosalina said at the Thursday hearing. “How can he put six holes in my cousin’s body and think it’s justified?”
Diane Amoia, Amoia’s mother, sent a letter to the judge before the hearing, writing, in part, “I am begging you to sentence him to the full extent. My hope is that you will.”
“Just two weeks before his death Adam bought his own house. He worked so hard to get it. He was so happy,” she added in her statement. “As a parent, you always hope you never get that dreaded phone call when they say your child is sick, hurt or in an accident.”
Amoia’s best friend Brittany Jones remembered him as a successful business owner who “supported his friend’s adventures.”