HONOLULU — The defense attorney for a tourist from Washington state accused of hurling a coconut-sized rock at an endangered Hawaiian monk seal says his client was trying to protect sea turtles and has since been physically assaulted, threatened and doxed.
Earlier this month, a witness recorded what prosecutors say was a video of him throwing the rock at a Hawaiian monk seal at a Maui beach.
A witness showed the officer video of the seal swimming in shallow water while a man watched from shore.
Breiner explained his client had been to Hawaii previously and was familiar with sea turtles, but not Hawaiian monk seals.
Lytvynchuk is a fisherman and thought the seal was an aggressive sea lion, the lawyer said.
“So his response was not to hurt this monk seal, but to get it away from the turtles,” Breiner said.
“The vast majority of attacks on monk seal and turtle are by locals,” he said. »
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