Defenders,
Since North Carolina does not automatically require juveniles to register if they’ve been adjudicated of a sex offense, many defenders don’t think to discuss sex offender registration with their clients. However, your client may be required to register if your client moves to another state, attends college out of state, or goes to Virginia or South Carolina for treatment. This resource – “A Snapshot of Juvenile Sex Offender Registration and Notification” will help you to advise your clients of potential issues if they leave North Carolina. Please note that the manual is from 2010, so be sure to double-check that no new laws have been passed since then, but it’s a great starting point.
Additionally, if you find that DJJ is recommending sending your client for treatment in a state that will require your client to be on its sex offender registry (notably Virginia and South Carolina), please contact our office. We have a motion for you to file to ask the court to enter an injunction regarding placement in a facility that would require the juvenile to register (and it’s been successful – many judges don’t understand this either).
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