Lawrence v. Texas Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Lawrence v. Texas - Essay Example Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003). He added that the statute on Anti-sodomy controls a personal relationship which is considered to be â€Å"within the liberty of persons to choose,† Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003). In this case, the petitioners were both consenting adults during the time the alleged offense was committed which was held in private, Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003). He added that the liberty protected by the Constitution gives substantial protection to adult persons in deciding how to conduct their private lives especially on matters related to sex, considered to be an intimate and a personal choice, Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003). Hence, in conclusion, the Justice commented that the State cannot degrade the existence of these acts of private sexual conduct by making it a crime nor can it justify invasion into the personal and private life of an individual absent any legitimate state interest, Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003). Justice Kennedy explained that if a statute was held to be invalid under the Equal Protection Clause, then there might be a way that such statute may be considered as valid if circumstances were changed, for instance, if the prohibition of a conduct is applied either between the same sex or different sex participants, Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003). He explained that the stigma of making a protected conduct criminal still remains if the substantive validity of the statute is not examined and even if it were not enforceable under equal protection reasons, Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003). Furthermore, being a criminal offense, it subjects the person to all the consequences, which may either be the punishment or in his job applications thereafter, for such a â€Å"state-sponsored condemnation,† Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003). Declaring