Diver who freed sharks gets Trump pardon after felony conviction stuns him: 'My heart sank'

Fox News

17 hours ago

A Florida-based diver thought he was doing the right thing when he freed a group of sharks—but instead, it led to a felony charge and, years later, a presidential pardon from Donald Trump.
On May 28, Tanner Mansell and John Moore Jr. were two of the sixteen recipients of Trump's full pardons after the pair were convicted in 2020 of theft of property within special maritime jurisdiction.
Mansell, 31, of Jupiter, Fla., reflected on the fateful day leading to his conviction and the eventual unexpected pardon from the White House.
In April 2020, Mansell and Moore took a group, which included the Kansas City police chief and a SWAT officer, and encountered a buoy connected to a longline over a dive site. A longline is a type of deep-sea fishing gear with baited hooks to catch fish.
"It was just another ordinary day on the water," Mansell said. "I had been running trips there for years and never had anything like this happen. I spotted something red in the distance thinking that, you know, maybe it was trash or a diver," he said. "We saw that it was a buoy connected to a line, which is when we started calling law enforcement."
Unaware that the longline belonged to a legally sanctioned National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shark research operation, Mansell and his team acted swiftly and cut the line. They released 19 sharks back into the ocean.
"I had no idea that this could be possible, you know, that you could have a permit to kill all these sharks," he said, noting that they had called the Florida Wildlife Commission (FWC) and NOAA's hotline before making the decision.
"In our mind, the entire time, we thought we were uncovering a crime rather than committing a crime," he said.
That belief quickly unraveled. Days later, Mansell said he received a call while out to dinner.
"I just felt like my world came to a stop, my heart sank," he said. "We called [law enforcement], we did everything that we could."
Despite their outreach to law enforcement, both divers were charged and convicted. While they avoided prison time, they were ordered to pay $3,343.72 in restitution, and the felony convictions prevented them from voting, owning firearms and traveling freely.
"The judge made a comment, and he commended us for our dedication to [the] environment," he said. "He gave out what my lawyer said was probably the lowest sentence ever."
Looking back, Mansell said he would have acted differently if he had known the law surrounding legal shark killings.
"Knowing what I know now, I absolutely would do things completely differently," he said. "But if I didn't know that there were permits for this, I don't think that I would change anything… when you think you're doing the right thing, you think you're doing the right thing."
"We were really surprised to get the pardon," he added. "It wasn't really discussed by my lawyers because it was so far down the line."
A turning point came when the case went to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit and Judge Barbara Lagoa confirmed what Mansell believed throughout the legal process.
"She basically said … this should've never gone forward … she's never come across a criminal that has called enforcement to report what they're doing in real time," he said.
Publicity from that opinion reached the libertarian Cato Institute, which published an article that eventually caught the attention of the White House.
"The White House actually called our lawyers and said that they were looking into this and asked for more information," he said. "That was really cool because our lawyer called us that the White House had it in front of them and were looking into it."
Mansell learned of his pardon while boarding a plane, sharing he was left "speechless" from the news.
"I was getting a call from my lawyer and I answered, and he says, 'Well, I've got good news for you. You just got a full presidential pardon.' I was speechless. I couldn't even say thank you. I just soaked it in."
Mansell profusely thanked the White House and Trump for the pardon.
"All I can say is thank you. And I hope that, you know, maybe in the name of sharks, we can all take a look at what's happening and say that [legal killings of sharks] shouldn't be happening in Florida."
"I'm just so grateful. I have said thank you every step of the way. Words can't explain it," he said. "I know that the White House took a look at this and they decided it was worth it. And I got President Trump's signature."
Though the felony remains technically on record, Mansell said the practical implications of the pardon allow him to continue his work.
"The felony is fully forgiven so now I can vote, and I can own a firearm from what I understand," he said. "And most importantly, it expedites getting travel visas for my work in conservation."
Asked how his view of government and justice had evolved, Mansell admitted, "At first, I was like, I lost a lot of faith in it. I felt like it was just unfair, but now I'm thankful for the due process."
"I've learned so much through this process," he said. "I've always considered myself a law-abiding citizen, somebody that doesn't break the law and I respect law enforcement and commercial fisherman."
"I got through into this political battle between commercial fisheries and shark diving tourism and it's tough, but now I'm on the other side," he said. "At first I lost a lot of faith in the criminal justice system and now, a bit of that faith in the justice system is restored. There are a lot of checks and balances for a reason."
Mansell remains committed to shark conservation and hopeful his case will raise awareness.
"This case never should have been filed," Mansell's attorney, Ian Goldstein, said in a statement. "These gentlemen made an honest mistake and were trying to save sharks from what they believed to be an illegal longline fishing setup. I can't think of two individuals more deserving of a Presidential Pardon."