A privileged La Jolla teenager who repeatedly kicked a fleeing sea lion at one of Southern California’s most lavish seaside communities is finally facing the consequences.
Tyler Muehl, 18, pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday to violating the Marine Mammal Protection Act after a viral video captured him pursuing and kicking a sea lion at La Jolla Cove.
The disturbing episode unfolded in a community where the good life comes with a staggering price tag.
La Jolla ranks among the five richest neighborhoods in San Diego County, with median home values averaging between $2.3 million and $2.9 million and average household incomes topping $210,000.
But on July 22, prosecutors say Muehl chose to use the waterfront as the scene of an ugly attack on an animal that had been quietly sitting on a sea wall.
The teenager approached the California sea lion near Ellen Browning Scripps Park with his hands raised as though he were preparing to box or fight it.
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He even called himself “Max Holloway,” referring to the Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter.
The he started kicking.
Muehl admitted in his plea agreement that he kicked at the animal four separate times and made contact while doing so.
Twice, he forcefully kicked toward its face, sending the sea lion rearing back and recoiling.
The animal tried to flee.
Muehl chased it.
After the second kick, the sea lion turned to escape.
It stumbled on the sea wall as it fled, but Muehl continued after it and kicked toward it a third time.
Then came a fourth kick.
The teenager kept pursuing the sea lion until it finally managed to get over the sea wall and escape onto the beach.
Muehl agreed that video of the incident was a fair and accurate recording of what happened.
“Federal crime. Federal consequences,” US Attorney Adam Gordon said.
The case erupted after cellphone footage was posted on Snapchat and later Instagram, showing a young man kicking and chasing the sea lion.
The video went viral and triggered a federal investigation by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
“National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement takes all violations of the Marine Mammal Protection Act very seriously,” said NOAA-Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement West Coast Division Assistant Director Eric Morgan. “Intentionally striking or kicking a marine mammal is not only illegal—it is dangerous for the well-being of the animal.”
Muehl pleaded guilty to knowingly and unlawfully “tak[ing] a marine mammal” in waters or on lands under US jurisdiction by harassing and hunting a California sea lion, Zalphus californianus.
Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, “take” includes harassment, defined as an act of pursuit, torment or annoyance that has the potential to injure a marine mammal or disrupt its behavioral patterns, including migration, breathing, nursing, breeding, feeding or sheltering.
The misdemeanor carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
Muehl is scheduled to learn his fate Oct. 20, at 9:30 a.m., when US Magistrate Judge Jill L. Burkhardt is set to sentence him.
