A former medical student convicted nine years ago of sexually assaulting a Seton Hill University student is seeking to extend a nearly decade-long delay in his sentence.

Jerry Chai’s attorney told a Westmoreland County judge Friday that the 2017 sentence violates his client’s constitutional rights.

The defense argues that the requirement to register as a sex offender constitutes a “substantial and lasting hardship” that extends far beyond the limits of his two-year probation sentence.

At the center of the dispute is the requirement that Chai register for 15 years under Pennsylvania’s version of Megan’s Law. A Westmoreland County judge initially granted a stay of Chai’s sentence in 2017 to allow for an appeal. That delay remains in place despite appeals courts rejecting Chai’s challenge to his conviction and ordering a lower court to reconsider the registration requirement.

In December, Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael Stewart II upheld the registration requirement. Chai has since appealed that ruling and is now asking to extend the stay while the new appeal is litigated.

“It’s been nine years. What’s another year or two as it works its way through the legal system,” said defense attorney Matthew Ness.

Chai, 36, formerly of Union City, Calif., currently lives in Serbia. He is married and works in the technology industry as an application developer. He was a first-year medical student at the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) at Seton Hill in Greensburg in 2014 when he was accused by an 18-year-old student of improper sexual contact following a date. Chai has consistently maintained the encounter was consensual.

Following a three-day trial, a Westmoreland County jury acquitted Chai of felony charges, including attempted involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, attempted aggravated assault and forcible indecent assault. However, the jury convicted him of one misdemeanor charge of indecent assault.

Chai, who attended Friday’s hearing via video, has had no additional brushes with the law, Ness said. Nevertheless, the defense argues the potential impact on his reputation warrants further appeals.

“It hasn’t been a burden yet because he hasn’t had to register and harm his reputation,” Ness said.

Assistant District Attorney Cassidy Hatten argued that the delay has gone on long enough.

“The commonwealth believes the victim is entitled to finality and accountability,” Hatten said.

Judge Stewart made no ruling on Friday.