The Supreme Court on Friday said it will consider whether the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act requires sex offenders who move to a foreign country to notify their prior home state of their change of residence.
At issue is are the cases of two men who lived on opposite sides of the Missouri River in the Kansas City Metropolitan area, were both convicted of sex crimes in unrelated cases prior to the enactment of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, and later moved — again separately — to the Philippines.
Once _____ _____ and ____ ____ left the country, they neither man updated their sex offender registrations in the respective jurisdictions they’d departed. But because of where they lived before leaving Kansas City, their fates were decided different, and that is what presumably triggered the pending high court review. Full Article
Related
https://www.ca10.uscourts.gov/opinions/14/14-3041.pdf
http://www.courthousenews.com/2015/11/06/lunsford%208th.pdf
http://www.courthousenews.com/2015/11/06/nichols%2010th.pdf
The impact of this decision will be huge! The number of registered citizens who have fled the U.S. due to the continued punishment of the registry is believed to be large. If the U.S. Supreme Court decides they must continue to update their registration in the U.S., their punishment will continue even though they live overseas. We know of no similar reach overseas by the national government and sincerely hope the Court will reach the correct decision, that is, to overturn this requirement.
If you read Gorsuch’s dissent, you can see where our friend in Rhode Island who was arrested and charged for federal FTR could have a defense. This judge felt that the USAG could not require more than what the AWA said – but the requirement to give advance notice and itinerary before traveling more than 7 days, is not in the law, its just some thing the USAG made up. Under this reasoning, the USAG has made a crime without the legislatures consent in violation of separation of powers.
Convicted of a misdemeanor 647.6. My wife, two children (who are Japanese nationals) and I are planning to move to Japan after the first of the year. Getting a spousal visa is the easy part. Actually getting through customs…that’s a question nobody seems to be able to answer, not the embassy, Japanese immigration, nor NSOTC. Hopefully bringing translated paperwork from attorneys, etc will help us all get in. I admit I was wrong, but refuse to accept lifetime punishment. Hopefully this court case will help me and my family live a hassle-free life with a fresh start.
“Some Jews fled Germany, most stayed in the hope that the German sense of justice would prevail . . .” (Jude)
Can you imagine Germany having insisted that emigrating Jews check in with the German government periodically and perhaps continue wearing yellow Stars of David to separate them from the mainstream society in other countries?
Here we have yet more of the illogical logic being applied in a manner that serves no useful purpose; again. If anyone can enlighten me as to what, if any, need is served by forcing someone to register in a place they no longer live I would be grateful.
This is another clear example of the non uniformity of these laws and clear cut evidence of persecution. These two victims of the registry were obviously living law abiding lives in the new places they called home, so I’m stumped again as to how not allowing these two people to get on with their lives is keeping children safe. Really, this doesn’t look anything like anything designed to keep children safe, let alone serve some kind of purpose other than to impose someones will upon another.
I have to keep reminding myself that this is coming from a country (usa) that has appointed it’s self arbiter of how the world should think and act, even when the world doesn’t want to be told how to think and act, and most everywhere it imposes its will bad things happen, like millions of innocent people being either killed or displaced from their homes and their countries thrust into ruin and anarchy.
Isaiah 3:4 “And I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them.”
Isaiah 3:5 “And the People shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbour: the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base against the honourable.”
The “base” is the criminal. This is saying that the people will be so confused that they will not know right from wrong, the left from the right, and everything will be turned up-side-down, and back-side-front.
This all comes down to whether the posecution can successfully argue that NOT receiving info from foreign registrants puts the US in danger. I was convicted in a state that requires non-residents to continue to register after moving out-of-state. This was challenged in state Supreme Court and upheld because the state is put at risk when the registrant does not keep them informed of their whereabouts. I would imagine a similar arguement could be made on the federal level…
Where does this BS end? There’s no proof that registries reduce sex crimes. And yet, they keep extending and expanding the requirements, forever and to the ends of the earth! All of these requirements just continue adding more legal twists and traps. Aaargh!!! (Sorry, I really needed to vent my frustration.)
@Janice or whomever
Quick question, does this case have a chance of impacting the Smith v. Doe decision based on ex post facto application of SORNA to those who where convicted before Megan’s Law?
They just keep piling on don’t they!
I think we all know how this is going to turn out and it is just one more nail in the coffin of any rights for those of us who have played totally by the rules…crossed every T and dotted every I and jumped through all the hoops YET STILL are never relieved of the PUNISHMENT place on those labeled as “sex offenders” regardless of the actual “crime” or even if they ended up on this hateful HIT LIST due to bad legal advice and are in many cases totally INNOCENT!
Isn’t what this case about is the fact that these two people just left without ever updating the jurisdiction where they were registered? How could this ruling make people who left and updated their info before hand or within the required timeframe have to continue updating their info? I left the US three years ago but I went in and filled out a form saying I was moving. Current address, new address, etc. I said that I didn’t have a new address yet, just that I knew I wasn’t coming back to the US. For new address I just put the city/country that I was arriving in, and they said that was fine. It was a one way ticket. All she told me was make sure I comply with any registration requirements in the country I was going to (none).
I have had an ongoing relationship with a lady in the philippines for the past 6 years, went and spent a month there with her and her 4 daughters. We decided that we wanted to stay together and planned to marry in the near future. I came back to the US to work and save money so we could buy a house and open a business for an income, after 5 years all our plans were ready and on January 2 I arrived in the philippines only to be refused by PI Immigration because the US sent a ” green sheet ” to them saying I was a sex offender and had intentions of committing crimes in the philippines. For 6 years I had loved this 52 year old woman , I have supported her , I have paid for school for her children , fed them , provided shelter and have basically been a good parent . Her children refer to me as their father, use my last name , and they make me proud by excelling in their accomplishments . Now our dreams are shattered by a country that is becoming increasingly more of a place that is constantly taking away of my rights to be free even though I have paid my debt to society . We need to let the public know our politicians have passed a law to make sure we live next door to them. Its time to use their own fear tactics against them, my plan is to purchase my own 1/4 page ad in a news paper to inform the public of this law. Its time to reel in the fearmongers in this country, this green sheet notification must be stopped,!