James Robert McKinney, a 40-year-old resident of Charleston, West Virginia, pleaded guilty on September 26, 2025, to failing to register as a sex offender as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). The plea follows his travel from West Virginia to New York and Florida without notifying authorities.
Court documents state that McKinney left West Virginia on March 28, 2025. He traveled by bus first to New York and then to Tampa, Florida. He admitted he intended to stay in Florida until late May 2025 and did not inform authorities about his presence there. On April 22, 2025, law enforcement encountered McKinney trespassing at a church property in St. Petersburg, Florida. When questioned by officers, he provided false information about his identity. Officers discovered his true identity during the arrest for trespassing after finding his West Virginia identification card.
McKinney was aware of his obligation under SORNA due to a previous conviction for three counts of third-degree sexual assault in Doddridge County Circuit Court on September 4, 2012. At the time of this latest offense, he was on supervised release after previously pleading guilty in United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia on March 16, 2022, for failing to update his sex offender registration as required by SORNA. He also has two prior convictions in West Virginia related to noncompliance with sex offender registration requirements.
Sentencing is scheduled for January 5, 2026. McKinney faces up to ten years in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine that could reach $250,000.
Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston commented on the case: “Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the United States Marshals Service (USMS).”
The hearing was overseen by United States District Judge Thomas E. Johnston. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan T. Storage is prosecuting.
SORNA is part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 and establishes minimum standards for sex offender registration and notification across the country. It requires registered sex offenders to keep their registration current in every jurisdiction where they live, work or study.
Additional information about this case can be found through PACER by searching Case No. 2:25-cr-130 on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia.
