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Another District Court Finds AWA Registration Provisions Unconstitional

By Corey Rayburnyung

And the holding was apparently based upon Commerce Clause grounds. Sentencing Law & Policy is covering the story. Like Berman, I couldn't find the opinion (the District of Montana's website has a link for opinions that is under construction). Here is a media account of the decision:A federal judge in Missoula this week ruled that a provision of the national Sexual Offender Registration and Notification Act is unconstitutional and dismissed a felony indictment accusing one sex offender of failing to register in Montana. In a 44-page opinion issued Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy ruled that Congress cannot federally criminalize a sex offender's failure to register in a state-run database. Congress therefore exceeded its authority under the Interstate Commerce Clause by making it a federal crime for a sex offender to travel to another state and fail to re-register in that jurisdiction, Molloy wrote...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sex Crimes on June 14, 2008 (boomark / email).