Fisherman Faces Year in Jail for Harming Humpback Whale
Fishing nets often inadvertantly become entangled around whales, and while that is a crime under the Endangered Species Act, hardly anyone ever faces charges. But one unlucky fisherman has been caught in the act.
Robert J. Eldridge Jr. faces up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine if convicted of three felony charges.
The district attorney says he “did knowingly and unlawfully take a marine mammal, to wit, a humpback whale in waters under the jurisdiction of the United States by acts of pursuit, torment, and annoyance which had the potential to injure said marine mammal in the wild.”
