Today I received an email from the McCarthy, Meghan (OJP), who is an employee of the Office of Sex Offense Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART). Here’s the email:
Thank you for reaching out to the Office of Sex Offense Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART) with your recent inquiry.
SORNA provides a comprehensive set of minimum standards for sex offense registration and notification in the United States, however, generally speaking, sex offense registration and the registration process, including updates and/or changes to registration information, is governed by the jurisdiction where a person was convicted or might live, work, or go to school. Each jurisdiction has the authority to register individuals (and to dictate the terms of that registration).
Since you are located in Indiana, any questions you may have concerning registration should be directed to the Indiana Department of Correction and Sex and Violent Offense Registry, at (317) 232-1232 or svor@idoc.in.gov.
Thank you for contacting the SMART Office and we hope you will find this information helpful.
Meghan McCarthy | Senior Policy Advisor
U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Justice Programs
810 Seventh St. NW,
Washington, DC 20531
SMART.GOV
SMART Office of Sex Offense Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking
Begin forwarded message:
From:
Date: March 7, 2021 at 6:42:18 AM EST
To: “AskSMART (OJP)”
Subject: sex offense registration questions
1-How do you register federally when your state of residence refuses to register you?
Federal law requires you to register, but its left to the states to forward your state registration information to the federal database.
I’ve looked long and hard for an answer to this question, to no avail.
The U.S., Department of Justice recognizes that sex offense registration is conducted at the state level and that each jurisdiction has the authority to determine which people will be required to register. Moreover, the federal government acknowledges that despite SORNA, a jurisdiction should not register a person unless the person is required to register under the jurisdiction’s laws. Office of Sex Offense Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking, U.S. Department of Justice, Sex Offense Registration and Notification in the United States: Current Case Law and Issues (July 2012).
I live in Indiana. I know men who have been sent to federal prison for not registering under SORNA. Indiana refused to register them then the U.S. Marshalls arrested them for not registering federally.
Can you answer these questions?
Sincerely,
12:59 PM (40 minutes ago)
To Meghan,
Thank you for a prompt reply… But you did not answer my question. What authorizes the federal government (U.S. Marshalls) to arrest someone for a SORNA violation when they are not required by their state to register? For a state to refuse to register you and then you get arrested for not registering seems to be a set up. I was not required to register in Indiana due to the Wallace v state case… Then, I was arrested, convicted and sent to federal prison for violating SORNA. My attorney brought up the Wallace case and the federal judge said state law didn’t matter… That I was still required to register federally. So… You telling me that registration is governed by state officials is not true what’s going on??? I’d really appreciate an answer that makes sense.
I believe that this type of set up or legal catch-22 is one of the biggest collateral consequences people who are required to register face. No one, to my knowledge, has ever addressed this issue. just wanted to post this… Hoping someone out there can do something about it.
Women Against Registry Family Foundation.
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