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California’s sex offender registration statute requires offenders who have no residence to register in the jurisdiction where they are “located” within five working days of changing their “location,” and give the authorities written notice of their new “location.” (Pen. Code, § 290, subd. (a)(1)(A) and (f)(1). 1 ) In this case, an offender convicted of violating these requirements contends the terms “located” and “location” are unconstitutionally vague.

After careful consideration of the disputed language in its statutory context, and in light of its legislative purpose, we are constrained to agree that section 290 does not give transient sex offenders fair notice of what they must do to conform with the registration requirements governing changes of “location.” We also conclude transient offenders can only guess at what is meant by the requirement that they register at every “location” they regularly occupy in a single jurisdiction. (§ 290, subd. (a)(1)(B).) Section 290 fails to provide even minimal guidelines for the registering authorities in these regards, thus encouraging arbitrary enforcement. Accordingly, we hold the provisions governing changes of “location” and…

I concur in the thoughtful majority opinion, which has correctly demonstrated the hopeless ambiguity that has been created by *637 having attempted to engraft on the provisions requiring certain sex offenders to register their residence the requirement that offenders with no residence register their undefined “location.” Moreover, I believe that the majority opinion preserves as much of the statute as can be given an intelligible interpretation in this respect, by holding that a transient, or homeless, offender must register in those jurisdictions in which he (or she) is located for at least five working days, even though he cannot be required to specify every “location” at which he may be found or every time he changes his “location.” I join in urging the Legislature to revisit these provisions and to consider enacting separate provisions which comprehensibly specify the registration requirements of an offender without a residence. I also join in the implicit suggestion contained in footnote 11 of the lead opinion (ante, at p. 636), that the Department of Justice consider exercising the authority presently conferred by subdivision (a)(1)(C) of Penal Code section 290 by developing…

California's sex offender registration statute requires offenders who have no residence to register in the jurisdiction where they are "located" within five working days of changing their "location," and give the authorities written notice of their new "location." (Pen.Code, § 290, subds. (a)(1)(A) and (f)(1). [1] ) In this case, an offender convicted of violating these requirements contends the terms "located" and "location" are unconstitutionally vague.

After careful consideration of the disputed language in its statutory context, and in light of its legislative purpose, we are constrained to agree that section 290 does not give transient sex offenders fair notice of what they must do to conform with the registration requirements governing changes of "location." We also conclude transient offenders can only guess at what is meant by the requirement that they register at every "location" they regularly occupy in a single jurisdiction. (§ 290, subd. (a)(1)(B).) Section 290 fails to provide even minimal guidelines for the registering authorities in these regards, thus encouraging arbitrary enforcement. Accordingly, we hold the provisions governing changes of…