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Roe v. Wade overturned: Possible effect on other landmark cases

Supreme Court
Posted at 9:26 AM, Jun 27, 2022
and last updated 2022-06-27 09:37:57-04

(LEX 18) — The Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade brings with it concerns about birth control and same-sex marriage soon becoming illegal.

This comes after Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in part in a majority opinion, "Because the due process clause does not secure any substantive rights, it does not secure a right to abortion."

Justice Thomas called on the high court Friday to revisit and overrule three more civil right cases.

One of those cases includes Griswold v. Connecticut which protects the right for married couples to buy and use contraceptives such as birth control without government restriction.

The two other cases include Lawrence v. Texas, which rules criminal punishment for those who commit sodomy are unconstitutional, and Obergefell v. Hodges, which grants same sex marriage by way of due process and equal protection.

"Clarence Thomas, you say that there were errors in judgment made in those, in those cases. I really suggest, Clarence Thomas, you look in the mirror because that's the error in judgment," said James Obergefell, plaintiff in the case legalizing marriage equality nationwide.

Prior to Friday's overturning of Roe v. Wade, the three above cases established a legal right to abortion care based on substantive due process, which allows courts to protect rights even if they aren't explicitly in the Constitution.

Thomas also says substantive due process should be eliminated all together, saying in part, "We have a duty to correct the error established in those precedents."

People celebrating Pride at a festival in downtown Lexington over the weekend said they are concerned about the possibility that protection for same-sex couples could be lost due to a future supreme court ruling.