TACOMA — Federal prosecutors will seek 60-day prison sentences for two Makah men convicted of plotting to kill and killing a whale when they appear Monday in U.S. District Court.
Wayne Johnson and Andy Noel, both of Neah Bay, also would receive a year’s probation, including 100 hours of community service, if the court follows the prosecutors’ recommendation.
Three other Neah Bay defendants — Frankie Gonzales, Theron Parker and William Secor — pleaded guilty to killing the whale on Sept. 8.
They would receive two years of probation, including 100 hours of community service in the first 12 months.
Each of the charges on which the men face sentencing carries a maximum one-year jail term and $100,000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Sullivan and Assistant U.S. Attorney James Oesterle concurred with the federal Probation Office that no fines be levied “due to each defendant having demonstrated an inability to pay,” said Sullivan’s sentencing memorandum.
The document singled out Johnson and Noel as the leaders of the botched hunt, in which a whale died several hours after it was shot and harpooned in the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
