United States v. Lester Ealy, Sr.

MEMORANDUM

Lester Thomas Ealy, Sr., appeals from the district court’s judgment imposed following his guilty-plea conviction for failing to register as a sex offender under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”), in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2250 (a). Ealy challenges the district court’s denial of his motion to dismiss the indictment. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We review do novo, see United States v. Cabrera-Gutierrez, No. 12-30233, 756 F.3d 1125, 1128-29 , 2014 WL 998173, at *2 (9th Cir. Mar.17, 2014), and we affirm.

Ealy contends that the district court should have dismissed the indictment because SORNA did not require him to register in Washington until Washington had implemented a SORNA-compliant registry. He argues that a contrary interpretation of SORNA raises constitutional concerns under the Commerce and Ex Post Facto Clauses. Ealy’s argument is foreclosed by recent cases of this court. See id. 756 F.3d at 1129, 1129-32 , at *3-4 (Congress had the power under the Commerce Clause to enact SORNA); United States v. Elk Shoulder, 738 F.3d 948, 953-54 (9th Cir.2013), cert. denied, — U.S.-, 134 S.Ct. 1920 , 188 L.Ed.2d 944 (2014)…