In U.S. v. Dodge, No. 08-10802 (March 5, 2010) (en banc), the Court held that a conviction for transferring obscene material to a minor in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1470 qualifies as a “specified offense against a minor” and therefore subjects a sex offender to SORNA registration requirements.
The Court rejected the argument that the statute by implication excluded his offense from the list of qualifying offenses, noting the “broad purpose and scope of SORNA.”
The Court held that, in determining whether an offense met the SORNA definition, courts could look to the underlying conduct, not just to the elements of the offense. Here, Dodge evinced his intent that a thirteen-year old girl view him in a sexual state. This conduct qualified as a criminal offense against a minor.
