Morgantown Man Sentenced to Prison for Violating the Federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – James Mansfield Davis, 69, of Morgantown, was sentenced today to five months in prison for failure to register as a sex offender as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). The sentence is to be served consecutively to previously imposed sentences totaling seven years and 10 months in prison.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Davis was living in South Charleston when he failed to register as a sex offender as required following his conviction for possession of child pornography in United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia on May 20, 2024.

For that offense, Davis was sentenced on September 5, 2024, to six years and 10 months in prison, to be followed by 20 years of supervised release. Davis failed to self-report to prison as required on October 4, 2024. Law enforcement officers arrested Davis in Williamsburg, Virginia, on October 15, 2024. Davis was sentenced on August 20, 2025, to one year in prison for failing to surrender for a federal sentence, with the sentence to run consecutively to the sentence for possession of child pornography.

United States Attorney Moore Capito made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the United States Marshals Service (USMS).

United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan T. Storage prosecuted the case.

SORNA is part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 and provides a comprehensive set of minimum standards for sex offender registration and notification in the United States. SORNA seeks to strengthen the nationwide network of sex offender registration and notification programs, in part by requiring registered sex offenders to register and keep their registration current in each jurisdiction in which they reside, work, or go to school.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:24-cr-189.

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