Ohio Man Indicted for Failure to Register as Sex Offender

 United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced that a Dayton, Ohio, man was charged in federal district court with Failure to Register as a Sex Offender.

Shawn Kerns, age 41, was indicted on September 9, 2020.  Kerns appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Daneta Wollmann on September 16, 2020, and pleaded not guilty to the Indictment.  The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 10 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, 5 years of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.  Restitution may also be ordered.

Kerns was convicted of Gross Sexual Imposition in July 2012.  As a result of the conviction, he is required to register as a sex offender for life.  The Indictment alleges between November 11, 2019, and continuing through the date of Indictment, Kerns failed to properly register as a sex offender and update his registration.  The charge is merely an accusation and Kerns is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. 

The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Marshals Service, the Rapid City Police Department, the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office, and the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Kelderman is prosecuting the case.

Kerns was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial.  A trial date has not been set.