COUPEVILLE, Wash. - Even in a small town like Coupeville, routine traffic stops usually don't make the news.

Video: Seal pup spotted in woman's car

Larger screen

But you could hardly call what happened at Madrona and Broadway last Friday routine.

"One of my officers stopped a vehicle on the streets here in town for failing to stop at a stop sign," said Town Marshall David Penrod.

Penrod says when his deputy walked up to the car, something caught his eye.

"He looked in the back seat and noticed what he thought was a stuffed animal began to move around," said Penrod.

Staring up at him from behind the glass was a harbor seal pup just a few days old, scared and dehydrated.

The deputy's investigation of a rolling stop was now an investigation of something very serious. It's violation of federal law to capture a seal.

"I can't imagine what it would be like to look in the car and see a harbor seal just sitting in there," said park ranger Rachael Protas.

Protas says there have been several seal pups spotted near Coupeville recently. Where this particular this one came from is unclear.

The animal is still too young to be returned to the wild. Instead, it's being nursed back to health at an animal rescue in Friday Harbor.

Penrod still can't believe what happened.

"I've been here 14 years and I've never seen anybody put a seal in the back of their car," he said.

The woman who had the pup was not arrested. She claims a friend gave her the pup and she was on her way to find it some help.

The National Marine Fisheries Service is investigating and will make a recommendation to prosecutors on whether she or anyone else should face charges.