United States v. Knutson
2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 11053
| 8th Cir. | 2012Background
- Knutson was convicted of rape in Wisconsin and civilly committed twice before being released in March 2009.
- He registered as a sex offender in Wisconsin and later traveled to Minnesota.
- In November 2009, Knutson was arrested for failure to register; released on bond but failed to appear, leading to new charges of sexual assault in Minnesota.
- SORNA, enacted in 2007, makes it a federal crime to travel in interstate commerce and knowingly fail to register or update a registration.
- Knutson pled guilty to failure to register under SORNA for August–November 2009, after the interim rule and final rule (mirroring the interim rule) were in effect.
- The district court denied Knutson's motion to dismiss the indictment; Knutson reserved his right to appeal that denial.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Knutson has standing to challenge SORNA's non-delegation. | Knutson insists non-delegation is unconstitutional as applied to pre-Act offenders. | Government contends pre-Act offenders lack standing. | Remanded for merits on standing after Reynolds. |
| Whether the interim rule violating APA notice-and-comment applies to Knutson's conduct. | Knutson argues the interim rule was invalid under the APA. | Government argues the interim rule is not challengeable by Knutson because he acted under the final rule. | Interim rule challenges are not dispositive for Knutson; case remanded to consider merits. |
Key Cases Cited
- Reynolds v. United States, 132 S. Ct. 975 (2012) (ruling on standing for pre-Act offenders under non-delegation doctrine)
- United States v. Howell, 531 F.3d 621 (8th Cir. 2008) (de novo review of district court denial)
- United States v. May, 535 F.3d 912 (8th Cir. 2008) (pre-Act offenders lack standing (abrogated in part by Reynolds))
- United States v. Fernandez, 671 F.3d 697 (8th Cir. 2012) (remand for merits on non-delegation challenge after Reynolds)
- Stevenson v. United States, 676 F.3d 557 (6th Cir. 2012) (addressing APA notice-and-comment/eligibility issues post-SORNA)