How close was the Supreme Court vote in Lawrence v. Texas?
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6â3 in the case of Lawrence v. Texas on June 26, 2003, declaring that a Texas law criminalizing certain intimate sexual conduct between consenting adults of the same sex was unconstitutional.1
While the final vote was 6â3, the justices' positions varied:
* Majority: Five justicesâJohn Paul Stevens, Anthony Kennedy, David Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Stephen Breyerâvoted to strike down the Texas law and overrule the precedent set in Bowers v. Hardwick.1
* Concurrence: Sandra Day OâConnor agreed that the Texas law was unconstitutional based on the equal protection clause, but she did not join the majority in overruling Bowers or in the reasoning regarding the due process clause.1
* Dissent: Chief Justice William Rehnquist and Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas would have upheld the Texas law.1