LIVINGSTON COUNTY— A Mt. Morris man, charged with violating the Sex Offender Registration Act, has been found guilty of the crime.
Juan Marrero, 39, was charged with the violation in November of 2012, when he failed to update his change of address within 10 days, a requirement for sex offenders.
Marrero, represented by John Darpino and Ann Connor, was tried by ADA Josh Tonra in front of Judge Robert Wiggins.
The charges stemmed from a period between November 2012, when Marrero left his last known address, to early December 2012, when he took up residence at his latest address in Mt. Morris. According to his own testimony, Marrero had plans to move into a house in Dansville, but the homeowner refused as her grandson is in law enforcement and she believed the situation would create a conflict.
Marrero testified that because he had not yet obtained a permanent residence during this period, he did not believe he had to file a change of address. In closing,defense counsel pointed to Marrero’s previous cooperativeness with the SORA requirements, as well as the fact that he had not deliberately tried to evade law enforcement. ADA Tonra countered that the defendant’s alleged confusion was not relevant; he knew of the SORA requirements and he failed to meet them.
Judge Wiggins, finding Marrero guilty, reasoned that if a sex offender does not have to register while he is seeking a permanent residence, “the purpose of the SORA registry would be defeated.”
Marrero has been remanded to Livingston County Jail to await sentencing.