By AP
LANSING, MI –
The Michigan Supreme Court has narrowly overturned a lower court's decision that a homeless sex offender shouldn't be punished for not registering an address or giving his whereabouts to law enforcement.
In a 4-3 opinion released Monday, the high court said that being homeless "in no way prevents that offender from physically entering a law enforcement agency" and reporting his whereabouts.
Three Democratic-nominated justices dissented in Monday's opinion.
Randall Dowdy visited a Lansing shelter off and on until 2006 when he was told he could no longer go there because he was a convicted sex offender.
While living on the streets, he was charged with violating the Sex Offender Registration Act. An Ingham County judge dismissed the charges in 2008, and the Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal.