Somerville Man Sentenced for Failing to Register as a Sex Offender

BOSTON – A Somerville man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for failing to register as a sex offender.

James Mercer, 51, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to 27 months in prison and five years of supervised release. In June 2017, Mercer pleaded guilty to one count of failing to register as a sex offender. 

Mercer was required to register as a Level 2 sex offender in Massachusetts after being convicted in 1992 and 1996 on state charges. He has previously been convicted twice for failing to register: in Florida state court in 2007, and in federal court in Boston in 2015. 

Following his release from custody in relation to the 2015 federal conviction in Boston, Mercer left Massachusetts without reporting to authorities, as required by law.  Mercer was located in California, where he was arrested for failing to update his sex offender registration. 

Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb and U.S. Marshal John Gibbons for the District of Massachusetts made the announcement today.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Anne Paruti, Weinreb’s Project Safe Childhood Coordinator and a member of the Major Crimes Unit, prosecuted the case.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood.  In 2006, the Department of Justice created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from exploitation and abuse.  Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.