Michigan Sex Offender Registry Cut in Half After State Supreme Court Ruling

Michigan State Police removed more than 20,000 people from the state's sex offender registry after a Michigan Supreme Court ruling issued Sept. 9, 2026. The registry previously included approximately 43,000 registered offenders. The court ruled that amendments to the state's Sex Offender Registration Act could not be applied retroactively to extend registration requirements for offenses committed before July 1, 2011. Michigan State Police, which maintains the registry, were ordered to implement the change following the ruling. As of Sept. 11, 2026, more than 20,000 individuals had been removed from the registry, reducing its size by roughly half. The court's reasoning centered on constitutional protections against retroactive increases in punishment, finding that continued registration for pre-2011 offenses under the amended law violated those protections. The removals were completed within days of the court's decision, and reporting does not indicate any pending appeals or further legal challenges as of publication. It remains unclear how many additional individuals may be affected by further review or whether any categories of offenders were excluded from the removal process. Details on the specific offenses or timeframes of those removed, beyond the July 1, 2011 cutoff, were not specified in available reporting.