Supreme Court Sex Decision

I respectfully request that Justice Byron R. White and four of his colleagues step out of my bedroom and return to the courtroom.

The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a state’s right to outlaw oral and anal sex acts . . . between consenting adults . . . in the privacy of their own home. Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia have such laws.

Justice White, writing the majority opinion, likens homosexual lovemaking to “incest and other sexual crimes.” White and the four justices who joined him undoubtedly are prejudiced against homosexuals. Otherwise, they would understand that intimate behavior between consenting adults is unrelated to sex crimes such as incest--when an adult victimizes a child.

White also writes, “Victimless crimes, such as possession of illegal drugs, do not escape the law where they are committed at home.” The private expression of love and affection between adults should not be a crime. Such laws violate our civil rights.

Just imagine. . . . The police surround your house. “We know you’re in there!” they bellow through a bullhorn. “Come out with your pants up!”

It is easy to make jokes about the court’s decision because it is so outrageous. But when the Supreme Court upholds violations of our rights to privacy, when justices let personal prejudices interfere with interpretations of the Constitution, our laughter is little comfort.

MARJORIE CHASE

Los Angeles