Teenager pleas guilty to attacking California sea lion in viral video

Tyler Muehl, an 18-year-old from La Jolla, California, pleaded guilty in federal court to violating the Marine Mammal Protection Act after kicking a sea lion four times in a viral video. Prosecutors said the incident happened on the night of July 22, 2026, at La Jolla Cove near Ellen Browning Scripps Park, where the animal was peacefully sitting on a wall. Muehl acknowledged he repeatedly approached it with his hands raised and identified himself by the name of UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway as he attacked. He twice kicked the face, then chased and kicked the sea lion two more times before it escaped over a sea wall. He faces up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine, with sentencing set for Oct. 20.