Legal Definitions - Lawrence v. Texas

Definition: Lawrence v. Texas (2003) is a landmark case in which the Supreme Court of the United States invalidated sodomy laws across the United States, making same-sex sexual activity legal in every state and United States territory. The court held that intimate consensual sexual conduct was part of the liberty protected by the substantive due process under the Fourteenth Amendment.

Example: Before Lawrence v. Texas, legal punishments for sodomy included fines, life prison sentences, or both. In 1998, John Geddes Lawrence Jr. was arrested and charged with "deviate sex" for having anal sex with his partner in their home in Texas. The case eventually made its way to the Supreme Court, which ruled that the Texas law criminalizing sodomy was unconstitutional.

Explanation: The example illustrates how Lawrence v. Texas invalidated sodomy laws and made same-sex sexual activity legal in every state and United States territory. The case also highlights how the court recognized intimate consensual sexual conduct as part of the liberty protected by the substantive due process under the Fourteenth Amendment.