kxmc.com.com: Federal Judges Disagree on Sex Offender Registry
BILLINGS – Two district judges in Montana have reached opposite conclusions about the constitutionality of a federal law that requires sex offenders to register with local authorities when they move to another state.
District Judge Richard Cebull in Billings ruled Friday that the Adam Walsh Act and the included Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) are constitutional. But District Judge Donald Molloy in Missoula ruled in June that the act didn't pass constitutional muster.
The contradictory rulings mean the U.S. 9th Circuit Court will have to resolve the matter.
After determining that Congress exceeded its authority under the Interstate Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution, Molloy dismissed the charges against Waybright. That case has been appealed to the 9th Circuit.
