Alaska fishermen sentenced for killing endangered sea lions

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

Dan Joling, Associated Press
Updated 7:30 pm CST, Wednesday, November 7, 2018



ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — An Alaska salmon boat skipper who killed endangered Steller sea lions with a shotgun and hindered an investigation has been fined $20,000 in federal court.

Jon Nichols, 31, of Cordova, was sentenced Tuesday to five years' probation, three months of home confinement and 400 hours of community service.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah Smith also ordered Nichols to publicly apologize in a national commercial fishing magazine.

. . .

Nichols was captain of the fishing boat Iron Hide. Investigators determined that between May and June 2015, Nichols regularly ordered crewmen to shoot at Steller sea lions using shotguns belonging to him and Turgeon.

Read more: https://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/Alaska-fishermen-sentenced-for-killing-endangered-13372514.php

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NOAA Fisheries team collect samples from a
dead Steller sea lion near Cordova, Alaska in
June 2015. (NOAA)

[ailsagirl]

1. GOOD! Bastards

Of course, that doesn't help the sea lions any

[zonkers]

2. Lock him up Fuck probation.

[Mosby]

4. +1

[zonkers]

5. I am so sick of the gut level apathy and indifference regarding creatures and wildlife. The

recent easing of the ivory ban. the legitimizing of game hunting by Trump kids. Fuck them all. Okay, responsiblie hunting, lifestock for food, fine. But jeez, we are despicable the way we treat our fellow creatures.

[calimary]

3. Lock him up.

[Sudsy]

6. Commercial fishermen don't like

seals in their nets, eating their catch. What is unforgivable about this is that most fishermen use a device called a seal bomb to drive the lions away. A seal bomb is like a firecracker fired from a shotgun that explodes underwater. It is an effective and relatively harmless way to deal with the problem, and one usually does the trick. These guys are just assholes and not representative of most salmon fishermen.