North Carolina Defeats Challenge to Sex Offender Registry Law

North Carolina defeated a challenge to its sex offender registry law brought by a group that claimed retroactive punishment for crimes committed in the past is unconstitutional.

The plaintiffs, led by a group called the National Association for Rational Sexual Offense Laws and its state affiliate, said North Carolina’s sex offender registration statute runs afoul of the ex post facto clause of the Constitution. The law is effectively punitive and not effective in protecting the public welfare, they said.

The registration statute does impose tough burdens on qualifying offenders as alleged by the plaintiffs, which includes two “John Does,” found ...