Westminster Man Charged in Sea Lion’s Shooting

The U.S. attorney’s office charged a Westminster man Thursday with shooting a sea lion in the head, a violation of the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act.

If James Arthur Marshall, 43, is convicted, he could face a maximum of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine, Assistant U.S. Atty. Patricia A. Beaman said. Marshall was the captain of the commercial sport fishing vessel “GW” when the shooting occurred, Beaman said.

Undercover investigators posing as fishermen boarded the GW in Long Beach on Jan. 28, 1993, after receiving reports that someone on the boat had been shooting migratory birds, said Herb Curry, a special agent with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. An investigator from the state Department of Fish and Game also was aboard, Curry said.

While the allegations regarding the birds were never substantiated, Curry said, investigators captured Marshall on video shooting a sea lion in the head with a .22 caliber rifle, he said.

According to Curry, fishermen on the boat inadvertently had been catching mackerel and tossing them back into the ocean, attracting a circle of sea lions. When the boat began to pull away from the area, Marshall leaned out a window and fired, he said.

At the time, federal law allowed use of deadly force against the sea mammals only if certain conditions were met, including evidence that the sea lion was interfering with catcher gear and if nonlethal means were first tried.

“It was clear that [Marshall] was not following those rules and that the sea lion was not conducting itself in a manner that would interfere with catch,” Curry said.

The law has since become more stringent, allowing the use of lethal force only if a human life is in danger, Beaman said.

But violations of the law are difficult to catch, Curry said. In this case, investigators “happened to be there, and the incident was caught on videotape,” Curry said. “We feel it’s a strong case.”

Marshall could not be reached for comment.