A rule that Attorney General Merrick Garland issued in 2021 notionally requires people to do things that are plainly impossible. If they have been convicted of a sex offense, they must register with their state, even when the state neither requires nor allows them to do so. They also must supply the state with all the information required by federal law, even when the state does not collect that information.
Under 18 USC 2250, someone who fails to meet those requirements and who travels outside his state can be charged with a federal crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison. At trial, the defendant has the burden of proving that he was unable to register "as required" by the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). That Kafkaesque situation, a federal judge in California ruled yesterday, violates the constitutional right to due process.
.jpg?w=600)
