Last edited: February 14, 2005

 

Louisiana Sodomy Law Ruled Unconstitutional

Datalounge, March 19, 2001
Source: Southern Voice

By Mike Fleming

NEW ORLEANS — Supporting a decision she made less than a year ago, Civil District Court Judge Carolyn W. Gill-Jefferson ruled again on March 9 that the Louisiana sodomy law violates the state constitution’s privacy provision.

The Louisiana Supreme Court had asked Gill-Jefferson to revisit the ruling in light of a case related to the sodomy finding.

"A man’s home is still his castle in Louisiana," said John Rawls, a New Orleans attorney who challenged the state sodomy law on behalf of members of the Louisiana Electorate of Gays & Lesbians.

"The judge has upheld the right to privacy, and it is now legal for private, consensual, non-commercial adult sex to be at the discretion of the people involved," Rawls said.

Gill-Jefferson will issue a permanent injunction against the statute, which calls anal and oral sexual acts between adults in their homes immoral and punishable by up to five years in prison and $2,000 in fines.

The judge could take up to 10 days to sign the official order with the injunction.

The ruling will automatically be appealed to the state Supreme Court, according to Charles Braud, assistant attorney general.

The issue was on remand from the Louisiana Supreme Court, which had asked Gill-Jefferson to clarify her 1999 ruling that said, in part, the anti-sodomy law violates the state’s guarantees of privacy.

LEGAL and nine gay men and lesbians have appealed other parts of Gill-Jefferson’s ruling, which supported sections of the 196-year-old anti-sodomy statute.

The ruling Friday surprised Braud, who said that the case Gill-Jefferson was asked to review before the ruling was, in his opinion "all encompassing."

But the judge disagreed.

"[The case in question] has no bearing on the matter of the ‘crimes against nature’ law, as it was a case of non-consensual sex," Gill-Jefferson said. "The Supreme Court’s ruling was overbroad in scope. Therefore, I am upholding my original ruling. The Supreme Court has not given a compelling reason why the state should control private, non-commercial consensual sexual behavior between adult human beings."

In oral arguments, Rawls said that Louisiana is behind the times of modern thought, noting the laws in many European countries and even 34 states in the U.S. all "declare the bedroom off-limits to government."

Braud argued that his office is not trying to make a determination of right and wrong, only that addressing such statutes is not for the judiciary, but should be left to lawmakers.

"The Supreme Court was saying to Judge Gill-Jefferson that the law is there, it’s been there for 200 years, and we’re not going to change it. If you want it changed, go to the legislature," Braud said.

The ruling does not apply to the portion of the sodomy law that deals with prostitution or commercial sexual acts. That portion of the statute still remains in effect.

By ruling a portion of the state’s sodomy law unconstitutional, Gill-Jefferson put the case on a fast track to the Louisiana Supreme Court.

That court upheld the statute in a criminal case last year, but has yet to make a final determination in a civil case, like the LEGAL challenge.

"For now, every bedroom in Louisiana is safe from prying eyes. Not since King George III of England have we seen a greater threat to our freedom or liberty," Rawls countered.

Currently, 12 states ban all anal or oral sex, with some exceptions for married couples, while five states ban anal and oral sex between same-sex partners. A few states, like Louisiana and Texas, are awaiting the final outcomes to challenges to sodomy laws.

Some 32 states have repealed sodomy laws by legislation or litigation, says the sodomylaws.org website.

Some 30 years ago, every state in the union had sodomy laws on the books, said Steve Scarborough of the Southern regional office of the Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund, a legal group which has challenged sodomy laws in several states.

"Things are going extremely well, with those states in the shrinking minority," he said.


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