Bowers V Hardwick Case Brief

Citation: Bowers v. Hardwick, 478 U.S. 186, 106 S. Ct. 2841, 92 L. Ed. 2d 140 (1986)

Facts: Michael Hardwick was charged with the violation of the Georgia statute for committing criminalized consensual sodomy with another male adult in his own bedroom. The respondent Hardwick sued Michael Bowers, the Attorney General of Georgia in a Federal District Court, challenging the constitutionality of Georgia’s sodomy law which criminalized consensual sodomy. The respondent argues he was a practicing homosexual, under the Georgia sodomy statute, it placed him in imminent danger of arrest, also the statute violated his constitutional rights. The District court acknowledges the defendants' motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim. The Court of

John and Mary Doe, a heterosexual married couple were also plaintiffs in the action. Michael Joseph Bowers, the Attorney General of Georgia was the appellee.

Decision: The Court’s decision is that the statute did not violate the Respondent’s fundamental rights. Because, despite the consensual homosexual sodomy was committed to private, sodomy was still a criminal offense which was proscribed by the States’ law. The act of sodomy was not protected by any constitutional law. Justice Byron White delivered the opinion of the court. Chief Justice Warren Burger (J. Burger) and Justice Lewis Powell (J. Powell)concurred in the dissent. Justice Harry Blackmun (J. Blackmun)and Justice John Paul Stevens (J. Stevens) dissented

Issues: The primary issue is whether the respondent Hardwick’s right to privacy was violated, under the situation that he committed the act of consensual homosexual sodomy, which is banned by the written statute law. Homosexual, as the unrecognized relationship, and consensual sodomy is illegal according to the law. Nonetheless, Hardwick’s homosexual activities occurred on his private property and harm no one. Hardwick’s action could not be regulated by the Georgia statute under the Ninth Amendment and the Due Process Clause. Therefore, wasHardwick’s fundamental righwere violated because homosexual sodomy is a private individual behavior that is out of the control of state

From two different court decision showed us how Individual liberty may be limited by the state power. The district court was decided in favor of the Fourteenth Amendment, which addresses the equal protection of the laws. The liberal view on one’s Liberty. On the other hand, the federal district court result was in favoring of the conservative view on liberty. From the leading opinion of Justice White, he believes that although the incident occurred privately in Hardwick’s home, but it does not change the fact that the act of sodomy still violates the law, therefore the right of privacy should affect the result of this