A convicted Macomb County child molester was stopped last week at an airport in his attempt to fly to Europe in celebration of his 25th wedding anniversary because he failed to notify operators of the sex offender registry.
____ ____, 61, of Southfield, was arrested Aug. 28 by Michigan State Police minutes before he and his wife were to board a Delta flight at Detroit Metropolitan Airport headed for Amsterdam, and ultimately to Prague. He was to return Sept. 9.
“He said they were going on a 25th wedding anniversary cruise that he paid $16,000 for,” said MSP Trooper Craig Tuer, state coordinator for the Michigan Sex Offender Registry. “He wasn’t happy. He was in disbelief. Full Article
Is that a Michigan law? Or are we all expected to report leaving the country? Those bastards need to reimburse that family 16k.
This is what totalitarian dictatorships do. Welcome to the new world order. Maybe we should go out and bomb another country.
Wow, that’s the true meaning of being “held hostage”. I’ve always wondered if being on the registry meant never being able to leave or escape this countries punitive rules.
Things seriously need to change. This is absolutely ridiculous.
The. Soviets control of east Germany after ww2 kept them
from leaving…kept families divided ..separated from west
Germany family friends whom wished to be joined together.
Berlin wall……unbelievable what these idiots are doing in this
instance….if not free Americans …then what..?…due process
would have ruled not free… .these idiots are making this up
as they go……ex post facto.
I thought alert might be interested to knopw that the author of the adam walch act was basically kicked out of congress for molesting underage pages.
This is not only scary that they would bar him from leaving on a short trip — who gives a damn — but how in hell did they even know he was planning it?! I would think no one but he and his travel agent and the airline would know — how did the police even know? Even if he applied for a passport for it, that would have been a long time in advance, and it doesn’t state anything about any particular trip. How could the police know where her as going and where he booked it so they could get the info?
Are all travel agents now reporting everyone to the police — just in case they might be a sex offender?! Are airlines now turning over all passenger lists — just in case someone on the just might be a sex offender?!
@alert is correct in that this 21-day advance notification is required by the AWA compliant STATE of MICHIGAN. If they have not always done so, this must be(come) part of the State’s legal code in order to be considered in compliance with the Adam Walsh Act. I believe @alert is mistaken in that it applies to all persons required to registered, not just Tier III. I am not a lawyer but I do not believe there is such a requirement for California registrants (yet :)).
See here (MI): http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/smart/pdfs/sorna/Michigan.pdf – VIII
All AWA compliant jurisdictions: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/smart/sorna.htm
Not surprisingly this unfortunate traveler had NO idea about this requirement. Who does? How many laws are there that YOU are not aware of?
I have to agree with Anonymous Nobody on this … there has been no (reported) followup of this case. A man with an old conviction, long off paper, with no history of registration issues — was allowed to check in at the airport (making any refund much harder to get) and then arrested. He failed to complete the 21 day advance notification required by an AWA state (though this was not mentioned in the news articles on the matter). It begs the question – how did the authorities know he did not complete the form? Had he completed and submitted it, his travel plans would have been electronically submitted to the receiving country(ies). Here, he failed to do so. Who knew (a) he was an RSO and (b) he was going to Europe and (c) he failed to complete the necessary form? Inquiring minds REALLY want to know.
There are several subtle points about this case which are not apparent. In a new section just added to the Community Room I have discussed those subtle points. See
http://eadvocate-community.blogspot.com/2014/01/travel-when-state-law-conflicts-with.html
When state law conflicts with SORNA?