John Geddes Lawrence (right), one of the defendants in 1998’s Lawrence v. Texas sodomy case, has died at age 68.
Lawrence, who died on November 20, served in the Navy and was later a medical technician. He and Tyron Garner were arrested in 1998 by a sherriff’s deputy who barged into Lawrence’s Houston apartment with guns drawn, following up on a false report of “weapons disturbance.” (Neighbor Robert Royce Eubanks had already been accused of harassing Lawrence and Garner and later admitted he was lying.)
Lawrence and Garner were charged with violating Texas’s anti-sodomy statute, but in its ruling, the Supreme Court stated that targeting male-on-male sex acts violates the 14th Amendment’s equal-protection clause and did nothing to further legitimate government interests.
As Lambda Legal executive director Kevin Cathcart told The Advocate:
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“Because Tyron Garner and John Lawrence had the courage to challenge homophobic sodomy laws, the U.S. Supreme Court recognized that love, sexuality, and family play the same role in gay people’s lives as they do for everyone else. That’s a colossal legacy and one for which his community will forever be thankful.”
Garner (at left in photo) passed away on September 11, 2006.
Source: Metro Weekly
ChrisC
RIP. It’s appalling that a country like the United States actually had anti-homosexuality laws as recently as 2003. Thank these two men for ending that horrible part of US History.
Omar
Mr. Lawrence is on pictured on the right of the photo not he left. Thank you Lambda
Lambda Legal for taking the case all the way to the Supreme court and thank you to Mr. Lawrence and Mr. Garner for standing up for EQUALITY. May you both RIP.
Daniel Villarreal
@Omar: Thank you Omar.
the crustybastard
Sad.
Ryan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_v._Texas
6 justices found that it violated due process laws. Only 1 found that it violated equal protection laws. Nice to know you’re fact checking, though.