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Privacy Prevails: Sodomy Law Repealed
On Sept. 24, the Kentucky Supreme quietly plea bargaining as many other
Court issued its decision in Wasson victims Of this law had done, Wasson
et al v. Commonwealth of Kentucky and and his attorneys Ernesto Scorsone,
judged a portion of Kentucky's sodomy Pam Goldman and Dean Bucalos pursued
law unconstitutional. In a split the case into the courts in an attempt

decision, the seven member court to overturn this law.

upheld in a 4 to 3 opinion two lower From the onset, this attempt

court decisions which found that the appeared futile in the face of the

section prohibiting private, 1986 US Supreme Court 5 to 4 decision

consensual acts between adults of in Bowers v. Hardwick in which the

the same sex was unconstitutional. Court judged that states had the

Justices C. Leibson, C.J. StephenS, right to uphold sodomy laws as

J. Combs and J.J. Spain were in the related to privacy rights for

majority decision with Justices J, homosexuals. This decision came at

Lambert, J. Reynolds and J, a time of widespread AIDS hysteria

Wintersheimber voting in the dissent and one US Justice has since said that

to not repeal the sodomy law. This in review he should have voted the

decision and its impact on the other way on purely legal grounds.

lesbigay community require some This swing vote would have effectively

perspective on the history of this made all US SOdOfﬂY laws

case. unconstitutional. Sodomy repeals then

Hiatory of the Case where left to a state by state
In l986, Lexington police Offensive.

undertook an undercover sting CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

operation outside of a local gay bar.

An officer engaged Jeffrey Wasson Have YOU been discriminated against

(then 23) in a 25 minute conversation in the Commonwealth of Kentucky

leading up to WaSSOH’S invitation tO for your sexual orientation?

the undercover officer to come home

with him. The officer then led THEN REPORT IT!

Wasson into mentioning sexual activity 231-0335

and arrested him on solicitation for

sedomy, a misdemeanor crime defined GLSISCfImInaﬁenPrwea

as anal or oral sex between members .

of the same sex only, Rather than 8P»HPWB£¥.,Thur..Fﬂ,&-SDR