Authorities arrested a registered sex offender and charged him with the use of social media by a registered sex offender.
Gary Stevens Williams Jr., 30, of Lilesville was arrested on Aug. 10, according to arrest warrants, though jail records show he was admitted into the Anson County Jail on Sept. 15. Deputies with the Anson County Sheriff’s Office did not respond to phone calls requesting more information by press deadline.
Williams allegedly used a Facebook page under the name James Winfield, according to the arrest warrants.
The law preventing registered sex offenders from using social media is highly controversial. Sex offenders are not allowed to “access a commercial social networking Web site where the sex offender knows that the site permits minor children to become members or to create or maintain personal Web pages” on the site, states G.S. 14-202.5.
Currently, violation of the law is a felony; however, in 2013, the N.C. Court of Appeals said the law violates the sex offenders’ freedom of speech. That ruling was appealed by Attorney General Roy Cooper, and at the moment, the law can still be enforced. The state Supreme Court will rule on Cooper’s appeal.
As of Monday evening, Williams was being held in the Anson County Jail under a $25,000 secured bond.
