Bad Decision out of 6th Circuit – SORNA obligations continue beyond state obligations
Yesterday, The 6th Circuit issued a disappointing opinion, holding that a sex offender’s obligations under SORNA is independent of any duties under state law. In other words, even if someone’s obligations to register under STATE law have been terminated, if they are still subject to registration under FEDERAL law, they must continue to register.
This creates a confusion, since there is no “Federal Registry” to register with, only the state. As for Florida, since our requirements go so above and beyond the requirements under SORNA (we call it SORNA on steriods) this has no current impact.
It’s time the Federal Government came in and created a uniform registry with uniform standards, or better yet, it’s time the Supreme Court abolished this mess altogether.
Willman v United States – 6th Cir
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I don’t remember. I had 3 years probation, Nov 1999 I think
Let me get this straight. If you are lucky enough to live in a state where you can actually get off their registry, your name will still turn up on a NSOPW.GOV search IF your period of registration is shorter than what SORNA deems the minimum?
So if you are a Tier I “offender” your minimum duration is 15 years after incarceration, but your duration can be reduced to 10 years with a “clean” record. How and to whom do you apply for a reduction???
Dear JZ,
You wrote: “So if you are a Tier I “offender” your minimum duration is 15 years after incarceration, but your duration can be reduced to 10 years with a “clean” record.” Where is this in law? I’m out of federal prison for 8 years as a Tier 1 (with a clean record). So I might only have 2 yeas to go according to what you posted. Just need to know if this is correct. Thanks
This is straight out of SORNA.
Bill,
Here’s SORNA:
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2015-title42/pdf/USCODE-2015-title42-chap151-subchapI.pdf
Duration is discussed in § 16915.
I find it odd there’s no reduction for Tier II but there is for Tiers I and III.
This makes no sense. There’s no such thing as a national sex offender registry.
How can you have to register if your home state has let you off they’d registry? Are you supposed to go to the nearest FBI office and register or something?
And what registry would you then be listed on?
Well and the interesting thing about this case is that he WAS on the registry at first by his own doing (mistake!) and then a judge ruled for him to be taken off. So then he’s arrested via the federal statute for not registering? What’s he supposed to do, show up and and beg them to put him on there. I guess that’s what he did cuz he’s right back on there. I tell ya, we gotta be careful about this kind of stuff – be absolutely sure when and where you have to register. Sometimes we don’t have to and we end up causing ourselves a whole lot of unwanted issues. I’m out of state, i registered when i first moved, but was taken off by a judge’s order and do not register any longer. And then FOR ME when i do come visit my fam in Florida I RISK IT. and i know that is not for everyone, but i also know that I register with Florida for a stupid 4 day visit that will start a whole chain of events that are worse than going to prison. BUT THAT IS ME.
Why is it an issue to register if your not violating in any way you shouldn’t worry about registering. Also its not the guys that happen to catch some messed up sex charge like mutual sex in a car or pissing on a bush and they shoot straight forever, its the stats showing us that out of those weak offences many re-offend in a worse way, so its a better safe than sorry situation. Id rather a grown man deal with registering, than a kid deal with being victim because we didnt take every approach. sorry not sorry.
Several reasons. So many IN PERSON registration requirements mean you need to take a half-day off work to go down to the registration office to report and forego pay. With your information online it’s nearly impossible to find employment, housing or reintegrate in the community – these are all factors that undermine rehabilitation and destabilize an individual triggering re-offense. An unknowing or unintentional misstep of a non-crime (ie: missing a registration date by a day because you unknowingly forgot) lands you in prison for up to 5 years. Collateral consequences such as residency restrictions and proximity ordinances that limit where you can live or be present. And vigilantism! People use this list as a hit list.
Also, the empirical research shows that these registries don’t work. 95+% of offenses are committed by someone NOT on the registry. Offending has no relation to physical proximity – just relational proximity.
OkieAttitude, let me see if I have your mode of thought down correctly? If one has a sexual failure in life then to protect society that one needs to be made known to the public for a lifetime. There is always the possibility there could be a repeat so the registry needs to be meticulously maintained even if history would indicate that likelihood is out of sorts. Therefore, the outside possibility of a recurrence makes it necessary to destroy a life and usually a family. Let’s look at it from another angle. I have been flying for many years. One day I read that airplanes can crash. Because of that possibility should I quit flying? The same goes with driving a car. There is a world of events that can go ‘south’ in our society. Does that mean we should avoid anything and everything that offers a threat? The registry represents ‘threats’ that almost never pan out. My airplane sits in the hangar and my car in the garage because of what might happen. In the meantime I get hit by lightning of which I was totally unprepared. The registry actually represents those least likely to commit an offense as 95% of offenses are done by those not on the registry. Do we need a registry of those not on the registry? It’s all craziness!!
You are misinformed. MOST sex offenses are pupotrated by someone in or close to the family. In fact you are 5x more likely to offend on that kid you spoke of than anyone I know on the registry. Plain facts from hundreds of studies yes, even the DOJ. It’s not the “registered sex offender parents shouldworry about. The data also shows that sex offenders as a whole re-offend at right around 3%, the L-OWEST recidivism of any crime. Now, I am a highly decorated Marine Corps Major I have a bronze star 3 purple hearts, I have led Marines into the jaws of hell just so the devil knows that a Marine is tougher than he is. Now, mine was consentual sex with a 17yo when I was 24. They Didn’t come after me until I retired from the Corps. So, I have spent 23 years fighting your wars, do you really think that you are more entitled to freedom that I? I earned it with a few pounds of flesh alot of blood. And years away from my family. And you act like the 10 years I did in prison was not enough. You don’t deserve the freedom that I earned. So, you hide behind your keyboard and run your mouth. You are so ignorant to the truth that you make a perfect little sheep. Go on now, little sheep, run along now, before us wolves get you.
Bravo Zulu!!!
As a former Army captain and officer of paratroops, I applaud you and your response.
Veritas (oh, and Semper Fi).
I can understand your thinking okie, but for the registry to hand the possibility of infinite imprisonment over one’s head for any kind of violation they seem worthy, is plain nuts. This doesn’t even get into the fact of country wide discrimination they face in regards to housing and employment, let alone government and state laws restricting when and where you can go, live, work, what kind of work, who they can visit or visit them, civil commitment for indefinite, indefinite probation, etc. No other crime carries even 1% of these kinds of regulations other than people on the registry, and there’s a less than 10% chance it will ever occur again. The punishment of the registry, does not fit the crime in 99% of all these cases.
Shame on you. My son is on the registry and he is intellectually and developmentally disabled. He’s like a child. Someone told him to expose himself and he did. He did not know it was wrong. I am the one who has to register him and I am the one who has to live the registry with him because he does not understand. There are many, many people who do not deserve this punishment.
cnes that is a nightmare scenario for many of us.
If you have a chance, I hope you have the opportunity to connect with LRIDD (Legal Reform for the Intellectually and Developmentally Disabled), which was on a conference call with FAC not long ago.
This is a bad result, but like FAC said in the article, it has no practical impact for most Florida registrants. My 25-year duty to register under Federal SORNA will expire in 2025, but I won’t be eligible to petition to be removed from the Florida registry until 2030. This is because the clock on the duty to register under Federal SORNA starts to tick upon conviction (or release from prison, if you were sentenced to prison instead of probation) but in Florida, the clock doesn’t start ticking until probation has ended.
It would be a blessing for us here in Florida if the Florida registration rules were changed to match Federal SORNA. Many of us would get off the registry much sooner, while others would actually get the chance to get off at some point since many Florida registrants who have to register for life under Florida law with no chance for relief are categorized as Tier II offenders under Federal SORNA, which “only” requires registration for 25 years from initial registration.
“It would be a blessing for us here in Florida if the Florida registration rules were changed to match Federal SORNA. Many of us would get off the registry much sooner, while others would actually get the chance to get off at some point since many Florida registrants who have to register for life under Florida law with no chance for relief”
This is an absolutely true statement.
Yes , Some of us could get off these Blacklist sooner than 20-25 yrs I reach my milestone of 9 yrs arrest free. Next month, It is not easy having to walk away from people running their Fu#k Boxes or trying to get you arrested because they are too chick$hit to step to you.. I just thankful nobody has the courage to put their hands on me Because I be going to jail. The sad part it is not the people who live in the area . It is the other people whose family members who are also Register citizens .. I guess they feel they have better charges than others, The landlord don’t care crap we get new people like every 60 days in my apt. complex well here hoping and wishing for the best
I thought all Florida registry convictions were allowed to apply for removal after 20 or 25 years?
With all due respect, I disagree. Petition Florida for registry removal all you want, it WILL NOT be granted. Well over half of its registry is either dead, incarcerated, or no longer in Florida. The odds of them de-registering someone simply because they are statutorily eligible appear non-existent.
Curious to know exactly how many people have been removed from Florida’s registry. I’d be comfortable betting that its not a 3-digit number. And that those who were had friends in high places.
Several have been removed pursuant to 943.0435(11) might not be in the hundreds yet but definitely several
what about the DOJ Rule 72 issue?
Hi Viki, what is DOJ Rule 72? I can’t find anything on it.
Hi RM and all,
Grace & Peace- : )
You made an interesting point about the SORNA-Federal registration requirements begin the year of sentencing. For me it was 1994, thus is has been 26 years ago. It sounds like I am now not required to register under SORNA, or would I have to petition a Federal court to not have the duty to register under SORNA? If so, how would someone go about this?
For the Florida requirement, at the time of my release from probation in 2002, the registration limit was 20 years, which would make me eligible in 2022. Does all of this sound like I am understanding the issues?
Thanks for your support and response!
Correct. You can petition in 2022
Florida extended the minimum length of registration from 20 years to 25 years in 2007. The change applied retroactively, somewhat needless to say.
Since Fl doesn’t counting time until you’re off probation, you’ll have to register until at least 2027. Even then, there’s no guarantee you’ll be allowed off the list. You get to petition to get off the registry after 25 years, but it’s up to a court to grant the petition.
You are not correct about the retroactive application of the change.