Question

Compare the U. S. Supreme Court's decisions on sodomy.

Compare the U.S. Supreme Court's decisions in Bowers v. Hardwick, 478 U.S. 186 (1984) and Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003).

document how the U.S. Supreme Court's position on sodomy relates to an inherent right to privacy.

Answer 1

The two cases represent the understanding of the society, its situations, and the laws in a very different context and thus the sodomy law is viewed differently by the same court in different periods.

In the first case, Hardwick was a homosexual man who fought with the help of ACLU against the system and the sodomy law in the state. However, eventually he lost the case even though he fought it till Supreme Court. In the second case, Lawrence successfully fought the case in the Supreme Court and the eventual result is that homosexual relationships were no longer considered illegal among consenting adults. This meant that the court repealed sodomy law not only in Texas but also in other states.

In the first case, Hardwick was charged with sodomizing with a partner by a police officer. However, when the case reached the Supreme Court, the main question was whether sodomy law is unconstitutional. The general majority opinion was that engaging in a sodomizing activity by a homosexual person was not something that is explicitly supported by the constitution and it violates the tradition and the history of the nation. Thus the sodomy law was upheld. We need to note that this case was in 1986.

In the second case, Lawrence was charged with violation of sodomy law of Texas. He contested the decision with the help of Lambda Legal and while the court appeals which denied the request to hear the case. Then he appealed to Supreme Court and they agreed to hear the case. Now, this was in the year 2003 and the overall understanding of society, liberty and privacy was different. In this hearing the Supreme Court ruled that sodomy law as invalid. The main argument was that every individual has the right to privacy and thus sodomy law actually encroaches upon this constitutional right. Thus the court ruled in favor of Lawrence.

Both of these cases are landmark cases and represent that the legal system, society and the understanding of ethics often depends on time and place where the event takes place.