No jail time for Florida man who brutally beat shark with a hammer on beach
No jail time for Florida shark beater
A Central Florida man who brutally beat a shark with a hammer at a Brevard County beach last year will not do any jail time. Instead, a judge ordered Brian Waddill to be placed on supervised probation for a period of 12 months, according to court records filed in July. He will not be allowed to go fishing and will be required to make a $250 donation to the Brevard County Zoo and take the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation's shore-based shark fishing course – special conditions ordered by the court.
BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - A Central Florida man who brutally beat a shark with a hammer at a Brevard County beach last year will not do any jail time.
Instead, a judge ordered Brian Waddill to be placed on supervised probation for a period of 12 months, according to court records filed in July.
During his time on probation, the 34-year-old Melbourne man will not be allowed to go fishing and will be required to make a $250 donation to the Brevard County Zoo and take the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation's shore-based shark fishing course – special conditions ordered by the court.
Waddill must also undergo a psychological evaluation and any follow-up treatment deemed necessary within 11 months.
In December 2022, Waddill was reportedly shore fishing at Bicentennial Beach Park in Indian Harbor Beach where he caught – what's believed to be a protected lemon shark – and then repeatedly hit the shark with a hammer, including ripping its gills with the hammer, according to witnesses and an arrest report. The beating was captured on video by a nearby surf camera.
Man facing charges after allegedly hitting shark with hammer
A Florida man is facing two misdemeanor charges after authorities allege he attacked a lemon shark with a hammer. The lemon shark is classified as a vulnerable species and it is illegal to fish for lemon sharks in Florida waters. The shark was never found so there was no way to determine if it lived or died.
He was charged and later adjudicated guilty on two second-degree misdemeanor violations related to the possession of a prohibited species and a violation regarding the harvest, landing, or sale of a shark.
In addition to probation, he must pay court costs and fines in the amount of $412 by June 2024.