NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that WILLIE WALKER, age 56, was sentenced on October 14, 2022 by Chief United States District Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown to a probationary term of five years for failure to report international travel as a sex offender under the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA).
According to court documents, WALKER was convicted in Washington State in 2002 of a sex offense that required him to register as a sex offender for life. In addition to registering as a sex offender, WALKER was also required to timely notify law enforcement at least 21 days prior to any travel outside of the United States. In February 2020 and April 2021, WALKER traveled to Ethiopia without informing law enforcement of either trip in violation of SORNA.
SORNA is coming
More SORNA FTR nonsense.
Probation for two instances? That seems unlikely. They could have given him a defacto life sentence of 40 or 50 years total easily.
Typical for LA?
“In February 2020 and April 2021, WALKER traveled to Ethiopia without informing law enforcement of either trip in violation of SORNA.”
And he was supposedly informed that he needed to do that notification?
Story has scant detail so it’s impossible to know how this went down. Not sure how he was able to travel twice over a more than one-year period out of the country without notification and without getting caught – seems like they should have nabbed him after the first time.
Curious if the case documents are available online anywhere so more detail could be obtained. Something tells me there’s more to the story.
Always worries me that in spite of providing notification to our registration office of my overseas travel one day they’ll try and get me on this, claiming I didn’t notify when it’s just a mistake on their part.
This man got 5 years probation? Either he had a very good lawyer, or there is more to this story. Just last May, this forum put out another story about a WV man who failed to notify the feds about international travel. He was facing like 10 years in prison. In both cases, I have learned something new. Registered sex offenders have gotten into Ethiopia and South Africa. Too bad those folks at RTAG can’t update the travel matrix.
If I ever make out this country I’m never coming back, especially Ethiopia they’d never find me.
🥱
I should just move to France or Italy and enjoy a SORNA free life.
Note to self: Ethiopia is open to PFRs.
He really dodged the bullet by getting a probationary term. At least we now know that registrants can get into Ethiopia. Just don’t forget to give a notice