42 PA Cons Stat § 9799.15 (2021)
2021 Pennsylvania Consolidated & Unconsolidated Statutes|Title 42 - JUDICIARY AND JUDICIAL PROCEDURE|Chapter 97 - Sentencing|Section 9799.15 - Period of registration

§ 9799.15. Period of registration. (a) Period of registration.--Subject to subsection (c), an individual specified in section 9799.13 (relating to applicability) shall register with the Pennsylvania State Police as follows:  (1) An individual convicted of a Tier I sexual offense, except an offense set forth in section 9799.14(b)(23) (relating to sexual offenses and tier system), shall register for a period of 15 years.  (2) An individual convicted of a Tier II sexual offense shall register for a period of 25 years.  (3) An individual convicted of a Tier III sexual offense shall register for the life of the individual.  (4) A juvenile offender who was adjudicated delinquent in this Commonwealth, or who was adjudicated delinquent in another jurisdiction or foreign country as a consequence of having committed an offense similar to an offense which would require the individual to register if the offense was committed in this Commonwealth, shall register for the life of the individual.  (4.1) A juvenile offender who is required to register in a sexual offender registry in another jurisdiction or foreign country as a consequence of having been adjudicated delinquent for an offense similar to an offense which, if committed in this Commonwealth, would not require the individual to register shall register for a period of time equal to that required of the individual in the other jurisdiction or foreign country.  (5) A sexually violent delinquent child shall register for the life of the individual. (6) A sexually violent predator shall register for the life of the individual. (7) An individual subject to registration under section 9799.13(7.1) shall register for the period of time equal to the time for which the individual was required to register in another jurisdiction or foreign country.  (a.1) Credit for time on registry.--(Deleted by amendment).  (a.2) Assessment by court after 25 years.--An individual required to register under subsection (a)(3), (5), (6) and (7) may be exempt from the requirement to register, the requirement to verify residence, employment and enrollment in an educational institution, the requirement to appear on the publicly accessible Internet website maintained by the Pennsylvania State Police and all other requirements of this subchapter if:  (1) Subject to subsection (c), at least 25 years have elapsed prior to filing a petition with the sentencing court to be exempt from the requirements of this subchapter, during which time the petitioner has not been convicted in this Commonwealth or any other jurisdiction or foreign country of an offense punishable by imprisonment of more than one year, or the petitioner's release from custody following the petitioner's most recent conviction for an offense, whichever is later.  (2) Upon receipt of a petition filed under paragraph (1), the sentencing court shall enter an order directing that the petitioner be assessed by the board. Upon receipt from the court of an order for an assessment under this subsection, a member of the board designated by the administrative officer of the board shall conduct an assessment of the petitioner to determine if the relief sought, if granted, is likely to pose a threat to the safety of any other person. The board shall establish standards for evaluations and for evaluators conducting assessments.  (3) The order for an assessment under this subsection shall be sent to the administrative officer of the board within 10 days of the entry. No later than 90 days following receipt of the order, the board shall submit a written report containing the board's assessment to the sentencing court, the district attorney and the attorney for the petitioner.  (4) Within 120 days of filing the petition under paragraph (1), the sentencing court shall hold a hearing to determine whether to exempt the petitioner from the application of any or all of the requirements of this subchapter. The petitioner and the district attorney shall be given notice of the hearing and an opportunity to be heard, the right to call witnesses and the right to cross-examine witnesses. The petitioner shall have the right to counsel and to have a lawyer appointed to represent the petitioner if the petitioner cannot afford one.  (5) The sentencing court shall exempt the petitioner from application of any or all of the requirements of this subchapter, at the discretion of the court, only upon a finding of clear and convincing evidence that exempting the sexual offender from a particular requirement or all of the requirements of this subchapter is not likely to pose a threat to the safety of any other person.  (6) A court granting relief under this subsection shall notify the Pennsylvania State Police in writing within 10 days from the date the relief is granted. If a memorandum of understanding has been entered into under section 9799.26 (relating to victim notification) with respect to relief granted to the petitioner, the Pennsylvania State Police shall transmit the information about the relief to the Office of Victim Advocate as soon as is practicable. The Office of Victim Advocate shall notify the victim of the relief, in accordance with the memorandum of understanding, as described in section 9799.26.  (7) The petitioner and the Commonwealth shall have the right to appellate review of the actions of the sentencing court under this subsection. An appeal by the Commonwealth shall stay the order of the sentencing court.  (8) The petitioner may file an additional petition with the sentencing court no sooner than five years from the date of the final determination of a court regarding the petition and no sooner than every five years thereafter.  (9) If the petitioner is exempt from any provisions of this subchapter and the petitioner is subsequently convicted under 18 Pa.C.S. § 4915.1 (relating to failure to comply with registration requirements), relief granted under this subsection shall be void and the petitioner shall automatically and immediately again be subject to the provisions of this subchapter, as previously determined by this subchapter.  (a.3) Agency cooperation.--All State, county and local agencies, offices and entities in this Commonwealth, including juvenile probation officers, shall cooperate by providing access to records and information as requested by the board in connection with the court-ordered assessment under subsection (a.2).  (b) Commencement of registration.--The following apply:  (1) The period of registration set forth in subsection (a) shall commence as follows: (i) For an individual who committed a sexually violent offense in this Commonwealth, the period of registration shall commence upon:  (A) release from incarceration in a State or county correctional facility, including release to a community correction center or community contract facility;  (B) parole or a sentence of probation; or (C) a sentence of State or county intermediate punishment in which the person is not sentenced to a period of incarceration.  (ii) For an individual who is a juvenile offender, the period of registration shall commence upon:  (A) release from an institution or facility set forth in section 6352(a)(3) (relating to disposition of delinquent child), if the juvenile offender is, on or after December 20, 2012, subject to the jurisdiction of a court pursuant to a disposition entered under section 6352 and is under court-ordered placement in an institution or facility set forth in section 6352(a)(3); or  (B) disposition, if the juvenile offender is, on or after December 20, 2012, subject to the jurisdiction of a court pursuant to a disposition entered under section 6352 and is placed on probation or is otherwise subject to jurisdiction of a court pursuant to a disposition under section 6352 that did not involve out-of-home placement.  (iii) For a sexually violent delinquent child, the period of registration shall commence upon transfer to involuntary outpatient treatment pursuant to section 6404.1 (relating to transfer to involuntary outpatient treatment).  (iv) For an individual who committed a sexually violent offense in another jurisdiction or foreign country or a comparable military offense, the period of registration shall commence upon establishment of a residence or commencement of employment or enrollment as a student within this Commonwealth. This subparagraph shall apply to an individual convicted of a sexually violent offense in another jurisdiction or foreign country or comparable military offense and who is a transient.  (2) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1), an individual specified in section 9799.13 shall initially register with the Pennsylvania State Police as set forth in section 9799.19 (relating to initial registration).  (c) Period of registration tolled.--The following shall apply:  (1) The period of registration set forth in subsection (a) shall be tolled for the period of time in which the individual specified in section 9799.13 is:  (i) incarcerated in a Federal, State or county correctional institution, excluding a community contract facility or community corrections center;  (ii) subject to a sentence of intermediate punishment which is restrictive and where the individual is sentenced to a period of incarceration;  (iii) committed to an institution or facility set forth in section 6352(a)(3) that provides the individual with 24-hour-per-day supervision and care;  (iv) committed to and receiving involuntary inpatient treatment in the State-owned facility or unit set forth in Chapter 64 (relating to court-ordered involuntary treatment of certain sexually violent persons); or  (v) incarcerated in a Federal correctional institution, excluding a community contract facility or community corrections center.  (2) This subsection shall apply to an individual specified in section 9799.13 who is recommitted to a Federal, State or county correctional institution for a parole violation or who has been sentenced to an additional term of imprisonment. In addition, this subsection shall apply to an individual committed to or recommitted to a Federal correctional institution. In the case of recommitment to a State or county correctional institution, the Department of Corrections or the county correctional facility shall notify the Pennsylvania State Police of the admission of the individual.  (d) Sexually violent predators.--An individual convicted of a Tier I sexual offense, a Tier II sexual offense or a Tier III sexual offense who is determined to be a sexually violent predator under section 9799.24 (relating to assessments) shall register for the life of the individual.  (e) Periodic in-person appearance required.--Except as provided in subsection (f) and subject to subsections (g) and (h), an individual specified in section 9799.13 shall appear in person at an approved registration site to provide or verify the information set forth in section 9799.16(b) (relating to registry) and to be photographed as follows:  (1) An individual convicted of a Tier I sexual offense shall appear annually. (2) An individual convicted of a Tier II sexual offense shall appear semiannually. (3) An individual convicted of a Tier III sexual offense shall appear quarterly. (4) An individual required to register pursuant to section 9799.13(7.1) shall appear annually. (f) Sexually violent predators.--A sexually violent predator shall appear in person at an approved registration site to:  (1) provide or verify the information set forth in section 9799.16(b); (2) be photographed quarterly; and (3) state whether he is in compliance with section 9799.36 (relating to counseling of sexually violent predators).  (g) In-person appearance to update information.--In addition to the periodic in-person appearance required in subsections (e), (f) and (h), an individual specified in section 9799.13 shall appear in person at an approved registration site within three business days to provide current information relating to:  (1) A change in name, including an alias. (2) A commencement of residence, change in residence, termination of residence or failure to maintain a residence, thus making the individual a transient.  (3) Commencement of employment, a change in the location or entity in which the individual is employed or a termination of employment.  (4) Initial enrollment as a student, a change in enrollment as a student or termination as a student.  (5) An addition and a change in telephone number, including a cell phone number, or a termination of telephone number, including a cell phone number.  (6) An addition, a change in and termination of a motor vehicle owned or operated, including watercraft or aircraft. In order to fulfill the requirements of this paragraph, the individual must provide any license plate numbers and registration numbers and other identifiers and an addition to or change in the address of the place the vehicle is stored.  (7) A commencement of temporary lodging, a change in temporary lodging or a termination of temporary lodging. In order to fulfill the requirements of this paragraph, the individual must provide the specific length of time and the dates during which the individual will be temporarily lodged.  (8) An addition, change in or termination of e-mail address, instant message address or any other designations used in Internet communications or postings.  (9) An addition, change in or termination of information related to occupational and professional licensing, including type of license held and license number.  (h) Transients, juvenile offenders and sexually violent delinquent children.--If the individual specified in section 9799.13 is a transient, a juvenile offender or a sexually violent delinquent child, the following apply:  (1) If the individual is a transient, the individual shall appear in person at an approved registration site to provide or to verify the information set forth in section 9799.16(b) and to be photographed monthly. The duty to appear in person monthly and to be photographed shall apply until a transient establishes a residence. In the event a transient establishes a residence, the requirement of periodic in-person appearances set forth in subsection (e) shall apply.  (2) If the individual is a juvenile offender who is not a transient, the individual shall appear at an approved registration site to provide or verify the information set forth in section 9799.16(b) and to be photographed quarterly.  (3) If the individual is a sexually violent delinquent child who is not a transient, the individual shall appear at an approved registration site to provide or verify the information set forth in section 9799.16(b) and to be photographed quarterly.  (i) International travel.--In addition to the periodic in-person appearance required in subsection (e), an individual specified in section 9799.13 shall appear in person at an approved registration site no less than 21 days in advance of traveling outside of the United States. The individual shall provide the following information:  (1) Dates of travel, including date of return to the United States. (2) Destinations. (3) Temporary lodging. (j) In-person reporting by incarcerated or committed individuals.--The requirements of subsections (e), (f), (g) and (h) do not apply where the individual specified in section 9799.13 is:  (1) incarcerated in a correctional institution, excluding a community contract facility or community corrections center;  (2) subject to a sentence of intermediate punishment which is restrictive and where the individual is sentenced to a period of incarceration;  (3) committed to an institution or facility set forth in section 6352(a)(3) which provides the individual with 24-hour-per-day supervision and care; or  (4) committed to and receiving involuntary inpatient treatment in the State-owned facility or unit set forth in Chapter 64.  (Dec. 20, 2011, P.L.446, No.111, eff. one year; July 5, 2012, P.L.880, No.91, eff. Dec. 20, 2012; Mar. 14, 2014, P.L.41, No.19, eff. imd.; Feb. 21, 2018, P.L.27, No.10, eff. imd.; June 12, 2018, P.L.140, No.29, eff. imd.)    2021 Unconstitutionality. Section 9799.15 was declared unconstitutional as applied by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Commonwealth v. Santana, 266 A.3d 528 (Pa. 2021).  2019 Unconstitutionality. Section 9799.15 was declared unconstitutional as applied by the Pennsylvania Superior Court. Commonwealth v. Lippincott, 208 A.3d 143 (Pa. 2019).  2018 Amendments. Act 10 amended subsec. (b)(1)(i) and (iv), added subsec. (a.2) and deleted subsec. (a.1) and Act 29 reenacted and amended section 9799.15. Act 29 overlooked the amendment by Act 10, but the amendments do not conflict in substance and have both been given effect in setting forth the text of section 9799.15. Section 20(1) of Act 10 provided that the amendment of section 9799.15 shall apply to an individual who commits an offense on or after December 20, 2012.  2014 Amendment. Act 19 added subsec. (a.1), retroactive to December 20, 2012.  2012 Amendment. Act 91 amended subsecs. (a)(1), (4) and (7), (c), (f), (g) and (h) and added subsecs. (a)(4.1) and (j).  2011 Amendment. Act 111 added section 9799.15. Section 16 of Act 111 provided that any reference in any act or part of an act to section 9795.1 shall be deemed a reference to section 9799.15 as if fully set forth in that act or part of that act.  Cross References. Section 9799.15 is referred to in sections 6404.2, 9718.4, 9799.13, 9799.16, 9799.17, 9799.18, 9799.19, 9799.21, 9799.22, 9799.23, 9799.25, 9799.26, 9799.28, 9799.42 of this title; section 4915.1 of Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses).