3 Makah Whalers Plead Guilty, Prepare Selves for Stern Wrist Slapping

3 members of the Makah tribe have pled guilty to a misdemeanor of violating the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Frankie Gonzales, William Secor Sr. and Theron Parker pleaded guilty Thursday to a single misdemeanor count of taking the whale in violation of the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The government agreed not to recommend a sentence of jail time to Magistrate Judge J. Kelley Arnold. Arnold could impose up to one year behind bars. The charge also carries a fine of up to $100,000. But it's unlikely that such an amount would be imposed on the men who come from the impoverished fishing village of Neah Bay.

Without the imposition of jail time, the men could receive up to five years of probation and be ordered to perform up to 100 hours of community service.

That really sucks rocks. I knew the tribe would go easy on them. I was hoping the feds would be a little tougher. Probation and community service? That's probably what you would get for spray painting the windows of a 7-11. They killed a whale for crying out loud!