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Chase Student Wins Federal Court TRO
Zachary Corbin
Zachary Corbin

Feb 27, 2009 - On February 11, 2009, Constitutional Litigation Clinic student Zac Corbin made his debut in federal district court and won. He argued before Judge Michael Barrett, convincing him to issue a temporary restraining order enjoining federal probation officers from requiring his client, John Doe, to register as a sex offender under the federal Adam Walsh Act.

This case presents important federalism issues. Mr. Doe, who was convicted of a sex offense under state law in 1994, has no duty to register under Ohio law based on when he completed his sentence (which was before July 1, 1997, the triggering date for registration under state law). The federal Adam Walsh Act, which was enacted in 2006, purports to require all sex offenders to register in the county where they reside, regardless of the date of conviction/date sentence completed.

Last Friday, the Ohio Justice and Policy Center (OJPC) received a frantic call from Mr. Doe, who was given an ultimatum by his federal probation officers: register by close of business on February 11, 2009, or face revocation of his supervised release. The OJCP, led by NKU Chase visiting professor David Singleton, assigned the case to Zac Corbin.

Corbin's primary argument was that the federal government cannot force Doe to register in Ohio without violating the Tenth Amendment, which prohibits the Federal Government from usurping powers that appropriately belong to the states. In granting the temporary restraining order, the judge agreed that the OJPC had a strong likelihood of success based on the merits of the case.

Professor Singleton, who supervised Corbin's work on the case, felt that he did a brilliant job at the hearing. "I am so proud of him," Singleton enthused. "He showed the judge and opposing counsel what Chase students are capable of doing. More importantly, this was a huge victory for our client. If Mr. Doe had been forced to register, he would have risked losing his housing and employment opportunities."

The case will be set down for a preliminary injunction hearing soon.