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Ryan Denver Arraigned For Involuntary Manslaughter In July's Fatal Boston Harbor Boat Crash

BOSTON (CBS) -- The owner and driver of the speedboat that crashed on the Boston Harbor last July and killed 27-year-old Jeanica Julce was arraigned in Suffolk District Court on Friday. Ryan Denver, 38, of Boston is being charged with involuntary manslaughter and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

Denver pleaded not guilty on Friday. Bail was set for $25,000.

Ryan Denver
Ryan Denver in court on Friday. (WBZ-TV)

Police say Denver was operating his 37-foot-long speedboat when he hit a day marker buoy at around 3 a.m. on July 17. The boat then sank, sending all eight people on board into the harbor.

Seven people on the boat, including Denver, were pulled from the water, but Julce did not survive.

"I can just tell you that the family is devastated," said Doug Sheff, the Julce family's attorney. "This is something that no one should go through. And she was, by all accounts, just a fantastic, loving, wonderful, promising young lady."

Jeanica Julce
Jeanica Julce. (Family photo)

Denver's attorney, Michael J. Connolly, called District Attorney Rachael Rollins' decision to indict him in October "a serious overcharge."

Connolly said Denver was sober at the time of the crash, and that he has cooperated with investigators.

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