MOBILE, Ala. — A Mobile County pastor and registered sex offender is facing six new felony charges accusing him of failing to follow Alabama’s sex offender registration rules, including by traveling to South Carolina and moving there without notifying authorities.
According to complaints filed Monday, Sept. 28, Cederick McMillian failed to report several trips to South Carolina, a change of residence, and employment or volunteer activity, as required under the Alabama Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, known as SORNA.
The new charges at a glance
- Accused: Cederick McMillian, a pastor and registered sex offender
- Charges: Six counts of violating Alabama’s Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, each a Class C felony
- Allegations: Unreported travel to South Carolina, an unreported move to Columbia, S.C., and unreported work or volunteer activity
- Prior SORNA charges: 2017, 2019 and 2023, according to jail records
- Underlying conviction: 2012 convictions for second-degree sex abuse and second-degree sodomy
Sheriff: ‘He didn’t go through the right procedure’
Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch said registered offenders must get permission before leaving the state, and McMillian did not.
“There’s a process for that. If you’re going to you know leave the state, that permission has to be granted, and he didn’t go through the right procedure, just left and started accumulating these charges,” Burch said. “He’d been living out of state for about a year.”
Trips and a move to Columbia, South Carolina
The complaints allege McMillian traveled to a home in Columbia, South Carolina, in March, and to an address listed as an elementary school in a Columbia suburb in May, both without first notifying the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office.
One complaint also alleges he moved to an address in Columbia without notifying either the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office or the sheriff’s office in South Carolina.
McMillian’s public profile in South Carolina appears to support that he had been spending time there. He was featured in a television segment on Easter 2025 that described him as a South Carolina pastor and promoted his book, “Overcomer.” His own promotional materials also list him as a session speaker on dating at a March 6 conference in North Augusta, South Carolina.
Church and foundation work not reported
Two of the complaints accuse McMillian of failing to register that he volunteered or worked with the McMillian Family Foundation and at New Birth Community Church on Forest Ridge Road in 2025.
Under Alabama’s registration law, offenders must report where they work and volunteer, in addition to where they live, so law enforcement can keep that information current.
A history of registration violations
McMillian is required to register as a sex offender because of his 2012 convictions for second-degree sex abuse and second-degree sodomy. The victim in that case was a 14-year-old girl.
Jail records show McMillian was previously charged with SORNA violations in 2017, 2019 and again in 2023.
Burch said repeat violators should face stricter consequences.
“If you are given an opportunity to be on probation, whatever, you know, one violation, you should go straight to prison. You know, not multiple chances, especially more than one shows that you flip your nose at what the law says,” Burch said.
Earlier case tied to Prichard burials
McMillian was also indicted in 2020 on three counts of abuse of a corpse connected to burials at Heritage Memorial Gardens in Prichard. That indictment alleged he caused the bodies of Dorothy McGee, LaQuan Packer and Tito Smith to be placed in ground that was not a legal cemetery and was unsuitable for use as one.
In April of this year, McMillian agreed to plead guilty to three counts of obstructing government operations in that case and was sentenced to time served.
How Alabama’s registration law works
Alabama’s Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act is considered one of the strictest registration laws in the country. Adults convicted of qualifying sex offenses must register with local law enforcement and keep their information up to date, generally for life. Among other requirements, registrants must:
- Report where they live, work and attend school, and update that information when it changes.
- Appear in person to verify their information on a regular schedule.
- Notify authorities before traveling away from their residence for a certain period of time, including travel outside Alabama.
- Comply with restrictions on where they may live and work, including rules limiting proximity to schools and child care facilities for many offenders.
Each failure to comply can be charged as a separate felony. In Alabama, a Class C felony carries a potential sentence of one year and one day to 10 years in prison.
Registration information for offenders in Alabama is publicly available through the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s online sex offender registry, which allows residents to search by name or address.
What happens next
McMillian is presumed innocent of the new charges unless and until proven guilty in court. It was not immediately clear whether he was in custody or whether he had an attorney who could comment on the new complaints.
The case will proceed through the Mobile County court system. This article will be updated as more information becomes available.