Federal Jury Convicts Sex Offender For Failure To Register

Ronald W. Paul, 74, of Gainesboro, Tennessee, was found guilty of failing to report his residence as required by the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, announced David Rivera, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee.

Following a trial before U.S. District Court Judge William J. Haynes, Jr., the jury found Paul guilty on three separate counts of failing to register under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act.  The evidence at trial proved that Paul, who had been convicted of rape and was therefore required to register as a sex offender, failed to report his residence and whereabouts to authorities at various times between 2009 and 2011.  Specifically, Paul traveled back and forth to the Philippines without reporting his travels to law enforcement and resided at an address in Gainesboro without reporting this address.  By doing so, Paul failed to keep his sex offender registration current.

The Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act is designed to protect the public from sex offenders by establishing a comprehensive national system for the registration of those offenders by tracking their interstate movement.  Under federal law, it is a felony for a sex offender to fail to register or update his or her registration.

Paul faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each count.

The case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys S. Carran Daughtrey and William F. Abely.