Griswold v. Connecticut

381 U.S. 479 (1965)

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Griswold v. Connecticut

United States Supreme Court
381 U.S. 479 (1965)

  • Written by Megan Petersen, JD
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Facts

Griswold (defendant) was executive director of the Planned Parenthood League of Connecticut. Buxton was a licensed physician and Yale Medical School professor who served as the medical director for the league’s center in New Haven. The center was open from November 1 to November 10, 1961, when Griswold and Buxton were arrested for giving information, instruction, and medical advice to married couples regarding the prevention of conception. Buxton and Griswold were arrested and convicted as accessories pursuant to a Connecticut statute that prohibited (1) using any drug or medical article to avoid conception or (2) assisting someone else in using such contraception. Griswold and Buxton sued Connecticut (plaintiff), alleging that the state statute, as applied to married couples, violated the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. The state appellate court rejected Griswold’s and Buxton’s constitutional argument and affirmed their convictions, as did Connecticut’s Supreme Court of Errors. Griswold and Buxton appealed to the United States Supreme Court.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Douglas, J.)

Concurrence (Harlan, J.)

Concurrence (White, J.)

Concurrence (Goldberg, J.)

Dissent (Stewart, J.)

Dissent (Black, J.)

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Key Terms

  • Fifth Amendment Due Process ClauseProhibits the federal government from depriving an individual of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. The purpose of this clause is to prevent abuse of government authority in legal proceedings. Due process also requires that the federal government use fair methods or procedures when its actions would deprive an individual of life, liberty, or property.
  • Fourteenth Amendment Due Process ClauseThe provision set forth at Amendment XIV, Section 1 of the United States Constitution prohibiting states from depriving any person of life, liberty, or property by means that are arbitrary or fundamentally unfair.
  • Liberty InterestIndividual freedoms that, if not constitutionally enumerated, are either inherent in theories of constitutional liberty or based in state-created positive law as found in a state’s statutes or regulations.
  • Ninth Amendment to the U.S. ConstitutionProvides that the enumerated rights in the Constitution do not serve as an exhaustive list of the rights retained by the people.
  • Right to PrivacyThe right to be let alone and to make personal decisions regarding private matters.
  • Third Amendment to the U.S. ConstitutionProhibits the quartering of soldiers during peacetime in private homes without the owner's consent; in wartime, makes quartering legally permissible but only according to law.

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