Background: The Arizona State Capitol building in Phoenix, Arizona (Arizona Legislature). Inset: Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen, who led the charge to uphold the state's sex offender registration laws (Arizona Legislature).
The rights of sex offenders in Arizona are not being violated by the requirement that they be registered for the rest of their lives, a federal judge has ruled.
U.S. District Judge Stephen McNamee found that the laws requiring sex offenders to remain on the state's sex offender registry for life and to report changes of residence and online identifiers are not unconstitutional. Rather, the Phoenix-based judge contends, such decisions are the government's prerogative.
"[I]t is plain that Arizona has a significant governmental interest in protecting children and preventing sex offender recidivism," McNamee wrote.
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The Nov. 6 ruling marked a major win for the lawmakers who backed the state laws, including Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen. The legislative leader celebrated McNamee's decision, calling the ruling a "victory for every parent in Arizona."
He also targeted his political rival, state Attorney General Kris Mayes, whom he plans to challenge in 2026. He accused her of skirting her responsibility to defend the state's case and "abandoning the state's responsibility to safeguard communities."
"When the Attorney General didn't defend Arizona's public safety laws, we refused to allow the safety of our children to be jeopardized," Petersen said. "This ruling makes clear that tracking convicted sex offenders is not only constitutional – it is necessary to protect families and prevent new victimization."
The lawsuit was filed by an Arizona resident listed as "Level One" on the sex offender registry, denoting that he is of the lowest risk of three possible levels. The man, who was granted anonymity and thus referred to as John Doe, pleaded guilty in 2016 to several crimes, including attempted sexual conduct with a minor under 15.
Doe argued several of his constitutional rights have been violated by the laws, including his 14th Amendment right to due process. He argued that the lifetime registration requirement is unconstitutional, as he cannot contest the requirement, and that it is unnecessary as he poses a low risk of recidivism because he is a "Level One" offender.
McNamee dismissed this argument, noting that Doe already got to contest his status before he was convicted of his crimes.
Petersen and Arizona House Speaker Steve Montenegro intervened as defendants in the case when they filed a motion to intervene. The judge ruled in their favor, despite Doe's claim that his First Amendment rights were violated because of his need to disclose his internet identifiers.
The defendants, McNamee said, "have met their burden of showing that Arizona's internet identifier reporting requirements do not burden substantially more speech than necessary to further Arizona's goal of protecting children and reducing sex offender recidivism." Furthermore, the judge wrote, "Arizona's internet identifier reporting requirements do not bar Doe from engaging in online discourse."
According to Arizona Mirror, a related legal challenge is being considered in the state. Several people have sued after lawmakers in 2024 expanded the number of people posted to the state's sex offender website and required sex offenders with children to disclose their children's names and schools.
