Reference no: EM133373687

Question: The federal Sexual Offenders Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) imposes a further criminal penalty on anyone with a prior conviction for a sexual offense who fails to register as a sex offender and engages in interstate travel. SORNA took effect on July 27, 2006. On February 28, 2007, pursuant to discretion permitted by statute, the Attorney General issued a regulation applying SORNA retroactively to offenders convicted prior to its effective date. (The courts have held that retroactive application of sex offender registration and notification laws does not violate the ex post facto clause of the Constitution.) The Attorney General issued the regulation effective immediately, citing the "good cause" exceptions of the APA for bypassing the notice-and-comment provision and the "advance publication" provision (requiring publication of the regulation at least thirty days before it can go into effect). Sex Offender X, after informing his Ohio parole officer that he intended to move to Georgia, did so in the fall of 2006. In March 2007, X was convicted of having violated SORNA. Offender X challenged the conviction on the grounds that the Attorney General did not have good cause for bypassing the notice-and-comment and advance publication procedures and that the regulation allowing