Griswold v. Connecticut (1965): Supreme Court Cases Series | Academy 4 Social Change

In a 7-2 plurality decision, the Court ruled that the Connecticut law violated the right to privacy by forbidding married people from using birth control. Justice William O. Douglas decided to use privacy framing instead of economic liberty framing. The Justice found the right to privacy in the Constitution taken as a whole. He noted that the right to privacy could be found in the First Amendment, the Third Amendment, the Fourth Amendment, the Fifth Amendment, and the Ninth Amendment. Douglas was specific in mentioning the issue of marriage and noted that under this law, police could search the marital bedroom for contraceptives, which he found ridiculous.

**Find a transcript, lesson plans, worksheets, and more at: https://academy4sc.org/topic/griswold...

**Think Further Questions
1. Why do you think the Court made a distinction between married and unmarried couples regarding contraceptive use? What is the difference?
2. Where do you think the right to privacy lies in the Constitution, if anywhere?
3. Justice Harlan specifically differentiated between married heterosexual relationships and homosexual relations. Do you think he could have envisioned that the Court’s decision would serve as a precedent for the Court to uphold homosexual relations thirty-eight years later in Lawrence v. Texas?

**Contents
00:00 - Case
01:58 - Decision
03:16 - Dissent
03:39 - Impact

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