A 30-year-old man has been sentenced to three years in federal prison for shooting and killing a protected northern elephant seal along California’s central coast in September 2019.
Jordan Gerbich was sentenced on Monday in a Los Angeles federal court. The incident happened on a beach near San Simeon adjacent to the Piedras Blancas Marine Reserve and Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.
Prosecutors said Gerbich used a .45-caliber pistol to shoot the protected animal as it was resting on the beach. The elephant seal was discovered the next day with a bullet in its head. The animal’s tail fins were cut off and chest cavity was cut open, as reported by CBS News.
"It remains unclear what motivated (Gerbich) to commit such an act; nevertheless, he knew it was wrong," prosecutors wrote in a filing.
Elephant seals are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
Gerbich, who lived in Santa Maria at the time of the incident, pleaded guilty last December to a misdemeanor count of illegally taking a marine mammal.
He also received a year of supervised release following his three-year term, three months home detention, 120 hours of community service and a $1,000 fine, according the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Related
