Teenager pleas guilty to attacking California sea lion in viral video

Tyler Muehl, 18, could face a year in prison for kicking marine animal four times on La Jolla coast An 18-year-old California man has admitted he kicked a sea lion in a video that went viral recently – while referring to himself by the name of an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) competitor – and has pleaded guilty to a federal crime. Tyler Muehl, of San Diego’s La Jolla neighborhood, faces up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine after acknowledging in court on Thursday that he violated the Marine Mammal Protection Act’s prohibition on harassment of wildlife, federal prosecutors said in a statement. In court papers, Muehl conceded that he repeatedly kicked a protected sea lion that was peacefully sitting on a wall in La Jolla Cove near Ellen Browning Scripps Park on the night of 22 July 2026. He said he went up to the animal with his hands up as if he were readying himself to fight the sea lion and referred to himself by the name of former UFC featherweight division champion Max Holloway as he approached the creature.

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