PITTSBURGH, PA. A resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 10 months’ imprisonment followed by 5 years of supervised release on his conviction for failure to register as a sex offender, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon imposed the sentence on Leon McGirt, also known as “Leon McGirk”, “Leon McGrit”, and “Leon McGirle”, age 45.
According to information presented to the court, McGirt was sentenced in 2012 in Essex County, New Jersey on a conviction for Criminal Attempt and Aggravated Sexual Assault (involving a minor victim). This conviction subjected McGirt to lifetime supervision in the State of New Jersey and required McGirt to register under SORNA. On December 18, 2018, McGirt traveled in interstate commerce, from the State of New Jersey to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and knowingly failed to register as required by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”) until his arrest on October 29, 2019 for absconding from supervision in New Jersey.
Assistant United States Attorney Heidi M. Grogan prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
United States Attorney Chung commended the United States Marshal Service for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of McGirt.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.