An 18-year-old California man has pleaded guilty to a federal crime after admitting he kicked a sea lion in a video that recently went viral. Tyler Muehl, from San Diego's La Jolla neighbourhood, faces up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine, federal prosecutors said in a statement.
Muehl acknowledged in court on Thursday that he violated the Marine Mammal Protection Act's prohibition on harassment of wildlife. Court papers state that Muehl repeatedly kicked a protected sea lion that was on a wall in La Jolla Cove on the night of 22 July 2026.
He confessed to kicking the sea lion four times, twice in the face, causing it to recoil and attempt to flee. Muehl then chased the animal, kicking it a third time as it stumbled, and a fourth time before it escaped over a sea wall to an adjacent beach. Muehl agreed in court that the widely circulated video accurately recorded the events.
Muehl was charged in a misdemeanor bill of information and pleaded guilty at his arraignment on Thursday. He is tentatively scheduled to be sentenced before US magistrate judge Jill L Burkhardt on the morning of 20 October. Federal court minutes indicate Muehl could remain out of custody until sentencing and has been ordered to abstain from alcohol or marijuana.