In the case of Lawrence v. Texas, the court had to decide whether anal sex, also known as sodomy, between homosexual couples was indeed illegal or not. At the time of this case, sodomy in Texas was a Class C Misdemeanor. The state trial court and the state court of appeals upheld the Texas law against sodomy. The United States Supreme Court reversed the decision of the Texas court of appeals.
The U. S. Supreme Court made this decision because citizens of the United States have the right to decide which sexual activities in which they will engage as long as it is mutually consensual and as long as both parties are of legal age to give consent. The Court stated that homosexual sexual activities are protected under the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court noted that only nine states still had criminalized same sex activities. The Supreme Court also reasoned that homosexual couples are entitled to the same equal protection under the Fifth Amendment that heterosexual couples enjoy.
I agree with the Supreme Court’s decision because what people do in their own homes is their own business as long as whatever they are doing does not hurt anyone else. Of course, torturing or murdering someone in the comfort of your own home is illegal. What sexual activities couples participate in is no concern of the government.
Yes, the Court changed its ruling based on public opinion in the United States and abroad. The Court noted that in recent years, U.S. and international laws against same sex activities have been abolished. England, Ireland, and the European Court of Human Rights decided that consensual homosexual conduct is legal. The social norms are changing and the Supreme Court responded accordingly.
References
Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003).
