The appeal of a convicted sex offender seeking to invalidate a ruling issued a decade ago that classified him as a sexually violent predator was dismissed.
Bilaal Abdulbadi Hale, 43, of Greensburg, contended he should no longer carry the sex offender designation and its accompanying requirement that he register his whereabouts with police for the remainder of his life. The appeal was based on a 2017 Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling that found sentencing and certain registration requirements for convicted sex offenders was unconstitutional but not retroactive to older cases.
Hale was convicted in 2005 and sentenced to serve two-to-five years in prison in 2006 for having sexual contact with a teen. A state appeals court originally upheld the conviction and sentence in 2009.
Westmoreland County Common Pleas Judge Tim Krieger ruled Wednesday that Hale’s latest appeal was filed years too late and that he has no jurisdiction to rule on the case.
Hale is currently serving a nine-to-18-year prison sentence, imposed in 2015, by Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio after he was convicted twice for failing to register as a sex offender.
