Lawsuit: Mississippi's sodomy law unconstitutional

11-9-2016 Mississippi:

A federal lawsuit has been filed to declare Mississippi’s sodomy law unconstitutional.

The lawsuit, filed by five people with the alias Arthur Doe, Brenda Doe, Carol Doe, Diana Doe and Elizabeth Doe, says in 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the right to engage in certain intimate sexual conduct, historically known as sodomy, is constitutionally protected under the 14th Amendment.

“Despite this clear proclamation made more than a decade ago, Mississippi continues to enforce its criminal statute prohibiting sodomy, titled unnatural intercourse,…by requiring people convicted of unnatural intercourse to register as sex offenders and follow myriad, onerous prescriptions on their everyday life pursuant to Mississippi’s sex offender registry law,” according to the lawsuit filed last month in U.S. District Court in Jackson.

The unnatural sex law says: “Every person who shall be convicted of the detestable and abominable crime against nature committed with mankind or with a beast, shall be punished by imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term of not more than ten years.”

The lawsuit seeks to prevent enforcement of the law. It seeks an injunction to compelling the state to remove the plaintiffs from the sex offender registry, expunge all records signaling their past inclusion, and/or enjoining the state from administering and enforcing the registry law. In addition, the plaintiffs seeks attorney fees and costs. ..Continued.. by Jimmie E. Gates