Commonwealth v. Dalton

Summary

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that a judge may not relieve a defendant of the obligation to register as a sex offender under G. L. c. 6, § 178E (f), when the defendant has been convicted of a sex offense involving a child. The court concluded that the statutory phrase “may not” prohibits judicial discretion in those circumstances and remanded for the registration order to be vacated and for the defendant to be informed of the duty to register.

Holdings

1. A judge may not relieve a defendant of the obligation to register as a sex offender when the defendant has been convicted of a sex offense involving a child, even if the defendant was not sentenced to immediate confinement and the circumstances otherwise suggest a low risk of reoffense or danger to the public.

Questions Presented

1. Whether G. L. c. 6, § 178E (f), permits a judge to relieve a defendant of the obligation to register as a sex offender when the defendant was not sentenced to immediate confinement but was convicted of a sex offense involving a child.
2. Whether the phrase "may not" in § 178E (f) grants judicial discretion or instead prohibits the judge from making the determination necessary to relieve the defendant from registration.

Disposition

remanded