State v. Bryant

While imprisoned in South Carolina, Roy Eugene Bryant (defendant) was notified in writing of his obligation to register as a sex offender upon release and to alert the county sheriff within 10 days of any move to another state. After his release, Bryant moved to Winston-Salem, North Carolina and into a home with a woman and her two young daughters, without ever registering in South Carolina, notifying anyone of his move, or registering in North Carolina. He was later arrested for failing to register as a sex offender in North Carolina and charged as a habitual felon; a detective testified Bryant admitted he never registered in South Carolina and had also been a convicted sex offender in Florida. Bryant argued North Carolina's registration statute violated due process because he lacked sufficient notice of the requirement; he was convicted, and the court of appeals reversed on that ground before the state supreme court took the case.