[Cerek the Barbaric]

Originally posted by IronDragon: Basically the justices said that this ruling was covered by the 14th amendment and it’s equal protection clause. The 14th amendment, like any amendment is considered tobe part of the constitution. The equal protection of all citizens of this country is part of the constitution and therefore not left to the states to decide if they will protect only some of its citizens but the federal government who is charged to provide equal protection to ALL citizens.

No, they didn't IronDragon. Justice O'Connor specifically mentioned that it should have been struck down for violation of the 14th Amendment, but that was NOT the reason given by Justice Kennedy in his majority ruling.

Justices John Paul Stevens, David Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer agreed with Kennedy in full. Justice Sandra Day O’Connor agreed with the outcome of the case but not all of Kennedy’s rationale. She indicated that the law should have been overturned on grounds that it violates the Constitution’s equal protection clause.

The article also specifically mentioned that the ruling did not address the issue of the 14th Amendment violation.

Thursday’s ruling was based on arguments by the plaintiffs’ attorneys that because the men were arrested in a private residence while engaging in consensual sex, the raid amounted to an unconstitutional invasion of privacy.

It did not address a second legal point raised by the plaintiffs, that by mandating disparate treatment for two classes of citizens, the statute violates the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.

While I agree that this is a major victory for gay rights, I think it's a bit erroneous to classify it as a victory for human rights. Of course, the real "kicker" is that the Texas legislature can come right back and attempt to re-instate the law...so long as they rewrite it to apply to heterosexuals as well as homosexuals. That way, they ARE within the "equal protection" parameters of the 14th Amendment, since the law is applied equally and without discrimination.