Lawrence v. Texas
LAWRENCE v. TEXAS
Briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court
Brief of Petitioners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .191
Respondent's Brief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .215
Opinion of the U.S. Supreme Court, June 26, 2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . .235
ISSUE
Gay and Lesbian Rights
HOW TO USE MILESTONES IN THE LAW
This section allows readers to investigate the facts, the arguments, and the legal reasoning that produced the Lawrence v. Texas decision. It also sheds light on the roles and required skills of attorneys and judges in resolving disputes.
As you read this section you may wish to consider the following issues:
- How did the appellant's description of the issues before the Court, or questions presented, differ from the appellee's description?
- How did the courts and the two parties differ in describing the meaning of particular prior cases to the present case?
- How did the holdings (conclusions of law) of the appeals court differ from those of the Supreme Court?
- On what points in the Supreme Court's majority opinion do the concurring and dissenting justices agree and disagree?
THIS CASE IN HISTORY
Lawrence v. Texas was a significant gain for the cause of gay and lesbian civil rights. In this decision, the Supreme Court held that state laws prohibiting sodomy were unconstitutional, arguing that any government interest in consensual sex between adults, either homosexual or heterosexual, infringed upon the right to liberty protected by the Due Process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. This argument follows the analysis made in rulings such as Roe v. Wade and Griswold v. Connecticut, which struck down bans on abortion and birth control (respectively) on the basis that such bans infringed on a person's right to liberty, which has been determined to include the rights to privacy and autonomy. Lawrence essentially overturned the 1986 precedent of Bowers v. Hardwick, in which the Court upheld a Georgia law prohibiting sodomy similar to the one struck down in Lawrence. A central argument for the decision in Bowers was that a long history of laws existed in Western civilization that have sought to repress homosexual conduct. The majority in Lawrence noted, however, that many sodomy laws have been overturned since Bowers, reflecting a new trend. Only 13 states in 2003, as compared to all 50 in 1961, still had laws prohibiting sodomy.
The Lawrence ruling caused considerable controversy. Opponents to the ruling contended that the majority manipulated the due process clause to push the cause of gay rights. They also disagreed with the overturning of Bowers v. Hardwick, because it took away from the states the power to determine their own moral laws.