Sioux Falls Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Failing to Register as Sex Offender

SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced today that Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange, U.S. District Court, has sentenced a man from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, convicted of Failure to Register as a Sex Offender. The sentencing took place on July 6, 2026.

James Murphy, 34, was sentenced to one year and three months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Murphy was indicted for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender by a federal grand jury in February 2025. He pleaded guilty on April 6, 2026.

Murphy was convicted of a federal sex offense in 2014 for soliciting a 13-year-old girl off Backpage for sex in exchange for money. At the time, Murphy was 21 years old. Because of this conviction, he is required to register as a sex offender. Murphy was aware of his obligation to register and to keep his registration current. Nonetheless, from early November 2023 through December 2024, Murphy knowingly failed to register and update his registration despite being instructed by law enforcement to do so.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Connie Larson prosecuted the case.

Murphy was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service to serve his federal sentence.

This case was brought as a part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorney's Offices and the DOJ's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Unit, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.