Ventura Opposes Sodomy Law But Won’t Stop Legal Challenge
The Advocate,
June 8, 2001
Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura thinks the state’s sodomy law is
"ridiculous" but will not stop the state’s attorney general from
trying to limit the impact of a ruling that struck down the law as
unconstitutional, his spokesman said Thursday. "His personal opinion is
he thinks this is ridiculous," said spokesman John Wodele. "This is
not something consistent with his principles." The decisions regarding
the state’s position on the case have been made by Attorney General Mike
Hatch. "He’s letting the attorney general make the decision,"
Wodele said, noting that Hatch is also an elected official and that Ventura is
not his boss.
The American Civil Liberties Union criticized Ventura Tuesday, saying his
administration is trying to limit the impact of a judge’s decision to
overturn the state’s sodomy law as unconstitutional. Judge Deila F. Pierce
last month struck down the law, but now lawyers for the state of Minnesota are
arguing that the ruling should apply only to the seven people who sued, rather
than the general population of the state. Although Ventura does not personally
agree with the sodomy law, he understands that it was approved at one point by
the state legislature, Wodele said. "Being that he is the governor and
this is a law duly passed by the legislature, he does have some responsibility
to defend the case," Wodele said. ACLU and state lawyers appeared before
Pierce Thursday, but the judge did not make any decisions, an ACLU spokesman
said. State lawyers opposed ACLU efforts to get the lawsuit recertified as a
class-action suit, ACLU officials said. That formality would make certain that
the ruling against the sodomy law would apply to all Minnesota residents.
"The sodomy law has been declared unconstitutional, and the state has no
good reason to say it should be unconstitutional for some people, but not
everyone," said Matt Coles, director of the ACLU Lesbian and Gay Rights
Project. "It’s a wake-up call that the government of Minnesota is
actually asking a court to say the law is unconstitutional for six or seven
people, but nobody else."
Ventura was a named defendant in the case because the plaintiffs sued him
and the attorney general as part of their lawsuit against the state of
Minnesota. Ventura agreed with the judge’s ruling about the sodomy law when
it was announced last month. In court papers the state argues that instead of
certifying the case as class action, the court should force the ACLU to amend
the initial lawsuit to name all local law enforcement entities in the state as
defendants. The ACLU is asking for the class-action certification to leave
"absolutely no question" that all Minnesota residents are covered by
Judge Pierce’s order.
[Home] [News] [Minnesota]
