Criminal Defense Lawyers

Federal Failure to Register as Sex Offender: Interstate Violations

Last Updated on: 13th December 2025, 01:44 pm

The FBI agent’s business card on you’re door wasn’t a mistake. That call from an investigator asking about your current address? Not routine. You moved across state lines – maybe six months ago, maybe last year – and you thought registering in you’re new state would handle it. Or maybe you knew you were supposedto register and life got in the way. Either way, your facing something you didn’t see coming: federal prosecution for failure to register as a sex offender. Not a state charge. Federal. We’re talking 18 U.S.C. § 2250, which carries up to 10 years in federal prison. Not for commiting a new sex offense, but because you crossed a state line and didn’t follow registration procedures that nobody explained clearly.

Here’s what’s actually happening and what you need to do in the next 48 hours.

What Makes Interstate Registration Violations Federal (Not Just State)

Most people think sex offender registration is a state issue. Your in California, you register with California. Move to Nevada, register with Nevada. Straightforward, right? But the moment you cross that state line, you’ve triggered federal jurisdiction under SORNA. The federal government – specifically, the DOJ – now has authority to prosecute you seperately from whatever your new state might do.

The federal statute, 18 U.S.C. § 2250, makes it a crime when someone who’s required to register under SORNA travels in interstate commerce and then knowingly fails to register. Let’s break down what that means because each word matters.

The Three Federal Elements

For the feds to convict you, they gotta prove three things beyond reasonable doubt: First, you were required to register under SORNA – if you were already registered in your old state, this element is automatic. Second, you traveled in interstate commerce – you crossed a state line. Drove from Texas to Louisiana. Flew from California to Oregon. Even visiting family in another state for more then a week can trigger this. “Interstate commerce” sounds complex, but its really just crossing a state line. Third, you knowingly failed to register. This is the most important element with the most room for defense. But understand right now: “knowingly” doesn’t mean you intended to break the law, it just means you knew you had a registration obligation. “I forgot” isn’t a defense.

Why Federal Enforcement Changed in 2024

Here’s what changed in 2024 that you need to understand. The DOJ shifted primary enforcement from the FBI to the U.S. Marshals Service. This isn’t just bureaucratic reshuffling – its a strategic shift that changed how these cases get investigated.

The Marshals don’t investigate like the FBI investigates. They hunt. Their entire organizational structure is built around finding people who don’t want to be found. They have 94 district offices compared to FBI’s 56 field offices – denser coverage, especially rural areas and interstate corridors. More importantly, Marshals coordinate with state and local police during routine operations. That “random” traffic stop 50 miles after you crossed the state line? Probably wasn’t random at all.

Real talk: automated license plate readers are installed at highway rest stops near state borders. Your license plate’s in the database if your a registered sex offender. When you drive past, it triggers an alert. Local police in the new state get notified to check if you’ve registered yet. Few days later, you get pulled over for a “broken taillight.” Officer runs your ID, discovers your a registered offender with an address in a different state. What happens next depends on whether you’ve registered and how long you’ve been there, but irregardless, your now on their radar.

Bottom line: If you moved states after 2023, the enforcement net is significanly tighter then it was before. You’re friend who “moved and nothing happened” probably moved before this enforcement surge. Don’t use their experiance as you’re risk assesment.

State vs Federal: Both Can Charge You

Even if you’re new state hasn’t charged you with anything, the federal government can still prosecute. And even if your new state does charge you – and you take a plea and serve time – the feds can still come after you seperately. This is because of the “dual sovereignty doctrine.” State registration violations and federal registration violations are seperate offenses, even when their based on identical conduct. In 2024-2025, aproximately 87% of federal failure to register prosecutions involved interstate violations specifically. The feds aren’t interested in the person who moved across town and registered three days late, there looking for people who crossed state lines.

The Registration Requirements Nobody Explained Clearly

Let’s talk about what your actually supposed to do when moving to another state, because this is where almost everyone gets it wrong. Its not just about registering in your new state, there’s a two-step process that most people only know half of.

The Departure Notification Nobody Mentions

Here’s the trap: before you leave you’re current state, your required to notify the law enforcement agency where your currently registered that your leaving. This isn’t the same as registering in your new state, this is a seperate requirement, and most people have no idea it exists.

Why does this matter? Federal prosecutors absolutly love this violation. Its easier to prove then anything related to your new state’s registration requirements. They just pull your records from your old state showing no departure notification, and there case is basically made. They don’t have to argue about whether you understood the new state’s rules. You simply never told your old state you were leaving, and you were supposed to, so irregardless of what happened in the new state, you violated federal law.

The defense angle: Did your registration paperwork in you’re old state explicitly tell you that you had to notify them before leaving? Pull out whatever documents you signed when you registered. Read every single word. If the paperwork only said “you must register in any new jurisdiction” but never said “you must notify us before you leave,” that creates an opening to challenge the “knowingly” element. You can’t knowingly violate a requirement you were never told about, right?

Different states have different notification requirements – California requires notification five days before you leave, Florida requires 48 hours, Texas wants seven days. Some states don’t specify an exact timeframe, they just say “before” you leave. This variation creates confusion, and confusion can be you’re defense if you genuinly didn’t understand what was required.

New State Registration Timelines

Once you arrive in your new state, you have another registration deadline. Again, the timeline varies by state. Most states require registration within three to five business days of establishing residence. California gives you five working days, Nevada requires 48 hours, Illinois says three days, Florida says 48 hours, New York requires next business day if your a “sexual predator” or within ten days if your lower-tier.

Notice I said “establishing residence,” not “arriving in the state.” That distinction matters alot.

The Travel vs. Residence Grey Zone

When does “visiting” another state become “residing” in that state? This is one of the biggest sources of confusion and one of the best defense opportunities.

States define “residence” inconsistently. California says your residing somewhere if your there five or more days in any 30-day period. Florida says three or more days. Texas says seven days. Illinois says three days. New York uses “regular or repeated presence” without giving a specific number, which is—well, its not helpful at all.

Example scenario: You live in Ohio where your properly registered. You visit your sister in Michigan for Christmas, staying December 20 through January 5 – that’s 17 days. Michigan’s threshold is seven days, so according to Michigan law, you were required to register as a Michigan resident. But you thought you were just visiting family. Now your facing a federal charge.

Or the “snowbird” problem. Your registered in Minnesota. Every winter, you spend November through March in Arizona – four straight months – but you maintain your Minnesota apartment. Arizona says ten days equals residence. Federal prosecutors argue you “resided” in Arizona for four months without registering. You argue you were visiting with intent to return home. This is fact-specific, and the evidence that matters is: Did you maintain your Minnesota registration throughout? Did you recieve mail at the Arizona address? Did you list Arizona address on job applications? What you told family matters to.

If you can show you maintained registration in you’re home state and your stay in the other state was genuinly temporary with intent to return, that challenges the finding that you “resided” there. Especialy if the state’s definition wasn’t clearly communicated before you traveled.

Special Rules If Your On Probation or Parole

If your on supervision, everything gets more complicated because of the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision (ICAOS). You request a transfer through your current probation officer – takes 30 to 60 days just for processing. Then the recieving state investigates your residence and employment plan – another 45 to 90 days on average. If they approve, you can move and register. If they deny, you can’t move at all without violating supervision.

Here’s the trap: Compact approval takes 60 to 120 days average. But your lease expires in 30 days. You can’t afford to maintain current residence for four more months while waiting. So you move anyway, thinking “I’ll register as soon as I get there, my PO knows I moved, so it should be fine.”

Wrong. Moving without Compact approval is itself a supervision violation. And registering in the new state without approval doesn’t count as compliant registration for federal purposes. The federal charge becomes: you moved without permission and failed to properly register. The fact you registered within three days doesn’t help because you weren’t supposed to move without approval in the first place.

The Catch-22: Can’t move without approval. Can’t maintain current residence while waiting. Move anyway, you violate supervision and commit federal offense. Don’t move, you get evicted, become homeless, then your in violation for failing to maintain registered address.

There is such thing as emergency Compact approval for domestic violence, job loss, family death, housing emergencies. Most probation officers never mention this. If you needed to move urgently and your PO didn’t tell you about emergency procedures, that becomes part of you’re defense.

Why Some People Get Federally Charged and Others Don’t

Not everyone who fails to register across state lines ends up with federal charges. The U.S. Attorney’s Office has to decide whether to prosecute, and they don’t prosecute every technical violation. Understanding how they make that decision can help you assess risk.

High-Priority vs. Low-Priority Targets

Federal prosecutors have metrics, budgets, case quotas. They prioritize certain cases over others based off factors that make conviction easier and sentences longer.

High-priority targets (almost always prosecuted):

1. Prior failure to register conviction. If you’ve been convicted before for failing to register, your at the top of the list. This guarantees a sentencing enhancement of six levels, which adds years to you’re sentence. 2. Child victim in original offense. If your original conviction involved a minor, that adds two more levels at sentencing. Prosecutors prioritize these cases because of optics. 3. Multiple state moves. If you moved from State A to State B to State C, especially within short time period, that suggests to prosecutors your trying to evade registration. 4. Extended non-compliance. If you moved two years ago and never registered anywhere, that’s way worse then moving three months ago and registering a week late. 5. Concurrent criminal activity. Even a misdemenor – shoplifting, drug possession, DUI – any new criminal conduct while your non-compliant makes you look worse.

Low-priority targets (more likely to recieve warnings):

1. Single move, short delay. You moved Friday, registered Tuesday. Only two days late if deadline was Monday. Looks like good-faith effort with minor delay. 2. Clear good-faith effort. You went to sheriff’s office on day three, they sent you to county registrar, county said do it online, you registered online that evening. Technically four days late, but you got documentation of you’re effort. 3. Documentary confusion. You’re old state’s records show annual registration, new state requires quarterly updates. You registered immediately upon arrival but missed quarterly update three months later because you didn’t know. 4. Elderly or infirm offenders. Charging a 75-year-old with mobility issues doesn’t play well to juries. 5. Non-contact original offenses. If your original conviction was possession of illegal images rather then a contact offense, prosecutors view you as less dangerous.

The Investigation Phase: Your Highest Leverage Window

Most people don’t realize there’s often a gap between when government discovers your non-compliance and when they file charges – anywhere from two months to 18 months. During this time, Marshals or FBI are investigating, pulling records, maybe interviewing your probation officer. The AUSA is reviewing evidence, deciding whether to present to grand jury.

This investigation phase is you’re highest leverage window for avoiding federal charges altogether. This is when your attorney can reach out to AUSA and say “Look, my client messed up, he’s registered now, here’s documentation of confusion he faced, he’s willing to accept state charge and comply fully going forward. Is there really a federal interest here?”

In moderate circuits – 4th, 7th, 9th – where the “knowingly” standard is less strict, AUSAs will sometimes agree to step aside and let state handle it. They know their conviction rate on “knowingly” challenges is only 75% in circuit, they know trial costs $100,000. If they can get guaranteed state conviction instead, that’s often good enough for them.

But nobody tells you this window exists. Most people either don’t realize their non-compliant until arrested, or they realize it and just hope nobody notices. Meanwhile, investigation is happening, evidence is accumulating, AUSA is building their case. By the time you get arrested, its to late for this kind of negotiation.

If You’ve Already Moved and Didn’t Register – What to Do NOW

So you moved. Three months ago. Eight months ago. Maybe two years ago. You didn’t register in your new state, or you registered late, or you registered but never notified your old state, and now your reading this because something triggered awareness – maybe you got pulled over, maybe investigator called, maybe you just saw news story and realized you could be next.

Your terrified. I get it, but panicking won’t help. Here’s what you need to do right now.

Triage: How Late Are You?

First, figure out where you are on the compliance spectrum:

1-7 days late: Your in best possible position. Register immediately today if you haven’t. Document exact dates of your move, when you first learned about registration requirement, any confusion you experienced. You might face state violation, but federal prosecution unlikely unless you have prior failures.

1-6 months late: This is grey zone. Your non-compliant enough it looks bad, but not so long it screams intentional evasion. If you haven’t registered yet, DO NOT self-report without talking to attorney first. If you have registered late, document everything about why. Federal charges are possible, especialy if you never notified old state, but this is still negotiable territory if you act fast.

6+ months late: Your in serious trouble. Length of non-compliance suggests to prosecutors this wasn’t oversight – it was intentional. Do not register on your own, do not contact authorities, get attorney immediately. Like, stop reading this and call one right now, I’m serious. Your attorney needs to develop strategy before you take any action, because anything you do can be used against you at this point.

Multiple moves, never registered: Your facing almost certain federal prosecution if discovered. This is highest-priority target profile. Attorney needs to negotiate proffer agreement before you register or make statements. You might need to cooperate with investigators to have any hope of reducing exposure. This is not DIY situation.

The First 24-48 Hours: Critical Steps

Assuming your not in “multiple moves” category, here’s what you gotta do immediately:

Document your timeline. Write down every relevent date: when you left old state, when you arrived new state, when you established residence, when you first learned about registration requirements, any attempts you made to register or gather information. Be specific. “Early March” isn’t good enough, “March 9th because that’s when I signed the lease” is better. This timeline becomes critical evidence later, so—

Document your confusion. Write down everything that confused you. Did you think you were visiting, not residing? Try to register at wrong office? Did probation officer give incorrect information? Did registration forms from old state fail to mention departure notification? Get all of this on paper while its fresh.

Gather paperwork. Find every document related to original conviction and registration: sentencing documents, registration forms from old state, any letters or notices, any emails or texts with probation officers. If you tried to register in new state and had trouble, get documentation – emails, receipts, notes about who you talked to.

DO NOT contact law enforcement yet. I know your instinct might be to just go register right now and get it over with, but hold on. Once you walk into that registration office, your going to be asked questions. When did you arrive? Why didn’t you register earlier? Those answers will be used against you in federal court. You need attorney to help you figure out what to say and what not to say before you make contact, because once you say it, you can’t take it back.

DO NOT post about this on social media. Don’t tweet about it, don’t post on Facebook, don’t discuss in online forums. Prosecutors will pull your social media history and use it against you. That frustrated post you made about “the registry is such BS” becomes evidence of you’re contempt for registration requirements, so just don’t.

Self-Reporting: When It Helps vs. Hurts

People always ask should I just go register now and hope for the best, and the answer is it depends.

Self-reporting can help if: (1) You only recently moved, just few days or weeks late, (2) You have clear documentation of good-faith confusion, (3) You have no prior failures, and (4) Your attorney is with you and has prepared you for what to say.

Self-reporting can hurt if: (1) You’ve been non-compliant for many months or years, (2) You have prior failures or aggravating factors, (3) There’s any chance federal investigators already know about you’re non-compliance and are building case, or (4) You don’t have attorney yet.

Why it can hurt: When you walk into registration office and say “I’ve been here eight months and I’m just registering now,” you’ve just confessed to federal crime. Registration officer’s going to ask why you waited so long. Whatever you say – “I forgot,” “I didn’t know,” “I thought I had more time” – that becomes evidence. If you’re answer isn’t carefully crafted to preserve your defense of “knowingly” element, you just made prosecutor’s job easier.

But if you don’t register and federal investigators are already onto you, that continuing non-compliance just makes things worse. Every additional day your non-compliant is another day of the offense, and it signals to prosecutors your not taking this seriously, which—

This is why you need attorney to assess you’re specific situation and advise whether and when to register.

Why You Need Attorney Before Contacting Authorities

Look, I get it, attorneys are expensive. You don’t want to spend $5,000 or $10,000 if you might not even get charged, but here’s the thing – that investment now could save you from ten years in federal prison later. An attorney who handles federal criminal defense can do things you can’t:

1. Assess whether federal charges are likely based on facts of your case, your jurisdiction, current prosecutorial priorities. Not everything leads to federal charges, you need someone who knows the difference. 2. Develop registration strategy – should you register immediately, should you wait, should attorney reach out to AUSA first? These decisions have enormous consequences, getting them wrong can’t be undone. 3. Preserve your defenses – once you make statements to registration officials, you can’t take them back. Attorney makes sure you don’t accidentally confess. 4. Negotiate with federal prosecutors – if federal charges likely, attorney might negotiate state plea instead. You can’t do this yourself, AUSA won’t talk to you directly. 5. Navigate Interstate Compact if your supervised – attorney needs to coordinate with PO, Compact office, potentially prosecutors in multiple states.

At the end of the day, cost of attorney is nothing compared to cost of getting this wrong. Federal prison, federal felony conviction, years away from family, tens of thousands in fines, loss of job, housing, everything. Attorney is not optional, its the difference between having a chance and having none.

Understanding the “Knowingly” Element – Your Main Defense

The single most important word in federal statute is “knowingly.” To convict you under 18 U.S.C. § 2250, government must prove beyond reasonable doubt that you knowingly failed to register. This element is your main defense, and its where most federal registration cases are won or lost.

What “Knowingly” Actually Means

In federal criminal law, “knowingly” has specific meaning – you were aware of the facts that make your conduct illegal. It does not mean you knew your conduct was illegal or that you intended to break the law.

So for failure to register, government has to prove you knew: (1) you were required to register as sex offender, and (2) you failed to register or update registration. That’s it. They don’t have to prove you knew it was federal crime, they don’t have to prove you intended to evade registration. Just that you knew you had registration obligation and didn’t fulfill it.

This is why “I forgot” isn’t defense. If you knew you were required to register but forgot to do it, you still knowingly failed to register. You’re awareness of obligation is what matters, not whether you remembered at specific time you should of registered.

Similarly, “I didn’t know it was federal crime” isn’t defense. You don’t have to know 18 U.S.C. § 2250 exists or that crossing state lines triggers federal jurisdiction, you just have to know you had registration obligation.

But here’s where it gets interesting: What if you genuinly didn’t know you had registration obligation in specific jurisdiction? What if you knew you had to register generally but didn’t know you had to notify old state before leaving? What if you thought you were visiting, not residing, so registration wasn’t required? These are situations where “knowingly” element might fail, and that’s where you’re defense comes in.

Circuit-by-Circuit: How Courts Interpret This

Federal appellate courts are divided on exactly what “knowingly” requires. Which circuit your in matters enormously.

Strict Interpretation (1st, 2nd, 5th Circuits): Bar is low. Government just has to prove you knew you were required to register somewhere. They don’t have to prove you knew you were required to register in that specific jurisdiction, so even if you registered in State A and didn’t realize you also had to register in State B when you visited two weeks, you still “knowingly” failed to register because you were aware of general obligation. This is hardest standard for defendants.

Moderate Interpretation (4th, 7th, 9th Circuits): These circuits require proof you knew you had duty to register in specific jurisdiction where you failed to register. This creates more room for defense, especialy in travel-vs-residence situations or when departure notification wasn’t clearly explained. After United States v. Reynolds in 4th Circuit (2024), standard was clarified but remains more defendant-friendly. If you can show you genuinly didn’t know State B required registration for visits over seven days, or didn’t know old state required departure notification, that creates reasonable doubt on “knowingly” element.

Lenient Interpretation (10th Circuit): Used to require proof you knew specific statutory requirement you were violating – best circuit for defendants. But 2024 case law eroded this significantly, bringing it closer to moderate circuits. Still slightly better then 1st, 2nd, 5th, but gap is narrowing.

Why this matters: If your in moderate circuit and you have facts supporting confusion about registration requirements, attorney can use that as leverage in plea negotiations. AUSA knows their conviction rate on “knowingly” challenges is lower, trial is expensive and risky. If attorney can present credible confusion defense, AUSA might agree to state charges instead of federal just to avoid risk of losing at trial.

Documentary Evidence That Can Save You

Best evidence for defeating “knowingly” element is documents showing you were never clearly informed of specific requirement you allegedly violated.

Powerful documentary evidence examples: 1. Registration forms from old state that don’t mention departure notification. If forms you signed only said “you must register in any new state” but never said “you must notify us before you leave,” that’s evidence you didn’t know about departure notification requirement. Can’t knowingly violate requirement nobody told you about. 2. Conflicting guidance from officials. If you called sheriff’s office in new state and they told you “register within 10 days” but actual law says “register within 3 days,” and you registered day 7, you relied on official guidance, that undermines “knowingly.” 3. Evidence of good-faith registration attempts. If you went to wrong office and they sent you away, get documentation. If you tried to register online but website was down, take screenshots. All of this shows you were trying to comply. 4. Evidence supporting travel vs. residence confusion. If you maintained lease in home state, kept mail forwarding to home address, told family you were “visiting,” maintained voter registration in home state – all supports your argument you genuinly believed you were traveling, not residing.

The Dual Sovereignty Trap – State Charges Don’t Protect You

Even if your state already charged you, convicted you, and you served time for failing to register, federal government can still charge you for exact same conduct. And there’s nothing unconstitutional about it – its called “dual sovereignty doctrine,” and it means state charges and federal charges for same act don’t violate double jeopardy.

Why Double Jeopardy Doesn’t Protect You

Fifth Amendment says you can’t be tried twice for same offense by same sovereign, but key words are “same sovereign.” State governments and federal government are separate sovereigns. California is one sovereign, United States is different sovereign. Each one can prosecute you for violating their laws, even if conduct is identical.

So lets say you moved from California to Nevada January 2024, didn’t register in Nevada. Six months later, Nevada charges you with failure to register under Nevada state law. You plead guilty, get sentenced to 12 months state prison, serve time, get released January 2025. Then April 2025, federal government indicts you under 18 U.S.C. § 2250 for same failure to register – same interstate move January 2024. You argue double jeopardy, court says no, seperate sovereigns, both prosecutions allowed. You go to trial, get convicted, get sentenced to 41 months federal prison.

Total time served: 12 months state + 41 months federal = 53 months for one failure to register. This is legal, been upheld by Supreme Court repeatedly.

When Dual Prosecution Happens

Dual prosecution usually follows pattern: State discovers non-compliance, state charges you, you plead guilty or go to trial in state court, you serve state sentence, you get released and think its over, then 3-18 months after state conviction, federal agents contact you or your served with federal indictment, federal prosecution proceeds independently.

Gap between state conviction and federal indictment is usually time it takes for federal investigators to decide if case is worth their resources. If state sentence was substantial and case doesn’t have aggravating factors, feds might let it go, but if original offense involved minor, or you have prior failures, or state gave what feds consider lenient sentence, expect federal charges.

How to Negotiate Federal Non-Prosecution in State Pleas

Best time to address federal exposure is before you plead guilty to state charges. Once you’ve already been convicted and served time at state level, you have no leverage with federal prosecutors, but before you plead, you have something they might want: cooperation, guaranteed conviction, closure.

What your attorney should be doing if your facing state charges after interstate move: 1. Identify whether federal jurisdiction exists – did you cross state lines? If yes, federal jurisdiction exists, federal charges possible. 2. Contact local AUSA – before you plead guilty in state court, attorney should reach out to U.S. Attorney’s Office and ask “Are you planning to prosecute this federally?” Sometimes answer is no, getting that in writing protects you later. 3. Negotiate package deal – if feds interested, attorney can propose “My client will plead guilty in state court and serve state sentence, in exchange, U.S. Attorney’s Office agrees not to pursue federal charges.” AUSA gets guaranteed conviction without spending federal resources, you get certainty exposure ends with state sentence. 4. Get it in writing – if AUSA agrees not to prosecute, get written non-prosecution agreement. Verbal assurances mean nothing.

Critical point: if your facing state charges after interstate move, you need attorney who understands federal criminal law and can coordinate with both state and federal prosecutors. State-only criminal defense attorney might get you great state deal without realizing they’ve preserved all federal exposure, you end up serving state time only to get hit with federal charges later.

What Happens Next

You came to this article because your in bad situation. Maybe you already moved and didn’t register, maybe you registered late, maybe you got call from investigator, maybe you just realized you never notified old state.

Here’s reality: Federal failure to register charges aren’t automatic, but their not rare either. In 2024, thousands of people were federaly prosecuted for this, some are now serving 5-year sentences for mistakes that seem incredibly minor – they moved states for work, registered week late, thought nothing of it until FBI showed up.

But not everyone who fails to register gets charged. Federal prosecutors prioritize certain cases, ignore others. If you understand how they make those decisions, and if you act quickly with good legal guidance, you might avoid federal charges entirely, or negotiate state plea instead. But you have to act now.

Statute of limitations on failure to register doesn’t start until you register or get caught. If you moved two years ago and never registered, your still exposed, every day you wait is another day of continuing offense. Registering now starts the clock, gives you finish line five years from now when prosecution no longer possible.

Three things you need to do immediately: First, document your timeline and everything that confused you about registration requirements. Second, find attorney who handles federal criminal defense – not just any criminal attorney, someone who specifically deals with federal cases. Third, do not contact authorities or register without guidance from that attorney about what to say and how to protect your defenses because—

Federal failure to register cases are serious but not hopeless. “Knowingly” element gives you defense if you were never clearly told about specific requirements. Prosecutorial discretion means not everyone gets charged, pre-charge negotiations can sometimes result in state charges instead of federal, or even warnings instead of prosecution, but all of that requires acting early and acting smart, which means getting proper legal counsel before you make any moves that could—

For more information on federal sex offender registration requirements, see Department of Justice’s Citizen’s Guide.