Legal Question in Criminal Law in Michigan

No. As the court stated in

PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, PLAINTIFF-APPELLEE,

v.

JONATHAN AARON CERVI, DEFENDANT-APPELLANT (Court of Appeals, 2010).

The construction and application of the Sex Offender Registration Act (SORA), MCL 28.721 et seq, is a question of law this Court reviews de novo. People v Golba, 273 Mich App 603, 605; 729 NW2d 916 (2007). Under SORA, an individual convicted of a listed offense after October 1, 1995, is required to register as a sex offender. MCL 28.723(1)(a); People v Anderson, 284 Mich App 11, 13; 772 NW2d 792 (2009). Defendant initially argues the trial court incorrectly concluded that his conviction constituted a "listed offense." We disagree.

[23] A "listed offense" is a defined term that includes numerous specifically identified statutes. MCL 28.722(e)(i-x). The definition of "listed offense" also includes a catch-all provision, identified as "[a]ny other violation of a law . . . that by its nature constitutes a sexual offense against an individual who is less than 18 years of age." MCL 28.722(e)(xi). The trial court in this case determined that defendant's conviction constituted a "listed offense" under the catch-all provision of the statute. The determination whether a defendant must register as a sex offender under the catch-all provision must be made on a case-by-case basis. People v Meyers, 250 Mich App 637, 650; 649 NW2d 123 (2002). In addition, the determination whether an offense is inherently sexual should be made by looking at the "unique nature of the criminal conduct underlying the charge." Id. at 649.

[24] We find that our decision in Meyers is instructive to the determination of whether defendant's conviction in the instant case satisfies SORA's catch-all provision. The instant case is substantially similar to that of Meyers, where the defendant in that case engaged in graphic sexual discussions of oral sex with an individual he believed to be a minor, but was actually an undercover officer. Meyers, 250 Mich App at 649.

The Sex Offender Registration Act has a "catch-all" section in the list of offenses that have to go on the registry. MCL 28.722(e)(xi): "Any other violation of a law of this state or a local ordinance of a municipality that by its nature constitutes a sexual offense against an individual who is less than 18 years of age." So, while the actual crime he was convicted of (using a computer to commit a felony) isn't in the MCL 28.722(e) list, the facts of his case must have convinced the judge that the nature of the criminal activity was a sexual offense against a person who was under 18 (or who your son thought was under 18).