Lawrence V. Texas: Evolution of Constitutional Doctrine

Abstract

The right of lesbians and gay men to be free from governmental intrusion into their sexual lives underwent a profound transformation between 1986 when Bowers v. Hardwick was decided and 2004 when Bowers was overruled by Lawrence v. Texas. Based in part on an earlier piece, The Use of Criminal Sodomy Laws in Civil Litigation, 79 Texas Law Review 813 (2001), this short essay traces the dramatic eighteen-year transformation in due process law on the topic of sodomy and speculates about some of the forces that led to the Court's decision in Lawrence.

Keywords: Constitutional Law, Right to Privacy, Due Process