United States v. Russell Clinger

MEMORANDUM

Russell Allen Clinger appeals his guilty-plea conviction for failure to register as a sex offender under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”), in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2250 (a). Clinger challenges the district court’s denial of his motion to dismiss the indictment. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We review de novo, see United States v. Cabrera-Gutierrez, 756 F.3d 1125, 1129 (9th Cir.2014), and we affirm, but remand to correct the judgment.

Clinger first contends that his conviction violated due process because he had no notice of his obligation to register under SORNA. This claim fails because Clinger admitted that he was advised of his duty to register under Washington law. See United States v. Elkins, 683 F.3d 1039, 1050 (9th Cir.2012).

Clinger next contends that SORNA violates the non-delegation doctrine because it allows the Attorney General to legislate SORNA’s retroactive application. This contention is foreclosed. See United States v. Richardson, 754 F.3d 1143, 1146 (9th Cir.2014) (per curiam) (“SORNA’s delegation of authority to the Attorney General to determine the applicability of SORNA’s registration requirements to…