SoCal leaders weight extreme measures after teen caught kicking sea lion: Completely out of control

Part of the idyllic La Jolla Cove in San Diego could be shuttered after video of unruly teen showed him repeatedly kicking a sea lion at the beachfront hot spot.California Coastal Commission members floated the idea on Friday after Tyler Muehl, 18, was arrested for the heinous animal attack, which sparked outrage in the community.Members believe the city has done an insufficient job of protecting wildlife as tourists flood the popular cove.“I’m, quite honestly, just embarrassed to be a city of San Diego resident right now,” Commissioner Matt O’Malley said, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.“Frankly, I’m sick and tired of the failure of the city to implement the previously proposed plan in a coordinated way.”O’Malley believes the circumstances have grown so abysmal that an additional park ranger presence is needed, in addition to a partial closure of the cove.“I’m left to conclude that where there is a will, there is a way, and I can only conclude there is no will on behalf of the city to protect the wildlife in this area,” he said.

“I know there are some limits to the role the commission can play here, but I would like for us to push those limits to their greatest extent.… I’m at the point where I believe a partial closure is the only way to deal with this issue until the city gets their program implementation figured out and investigates what is going on here.

I’m sorry to have to be an advocate for that at this point.”Another commissioner, Jose Preciado, said he believes the cove “needs some sort of reboot in the sense that maybe preserving the environment completely… while everyone gets policies and practices squared away.”A third member, commission vice chair Caryl Hart, said the situation at La Jolla Cove “has gotten worse and worse instead of better” in recent months.“It is completely out of control… but how can we protect these natural resources?” she asked.Problems between people and sea lions at the ...