According to the U.S. Department of Justice, two men have been charged with the sport shooting of sea lions in the Pacific Northwest:

According to the information filed by the Justice Department, defendants Richard V. North and Rodney D. Watson violated the Marine Mammal Protection Act in March 2002 when they shot at the sea lions that were feeding in the area. During two days in March, North and Watson were sport fishing for salmon on the Columbia River along the Washington State riverbank. North and Watson took turns firing a.22 caliber rifle at sea lions that were foraging for fish nearby in the river.

North succeeded in shooting one of the sea lions in the head, causing the sea lion to thrash about and bleed profusely from the head area. The sea lion dove and surfaced several times in this condition, and then disappeared.

If convicted, they could get a year in prison and a $100,000 fine.