USA

ACLU Backs Gay Sex in Public Toilets under "Privacy" Provisions

Hilary White - January 16, 2008

MINNEAPOLIS - The American Civil Liberties Union is arguing that men who have sex in public washrooms should be protected under court rulings guaranteeing privacy.

On Tuesday, the ACLU filed an amicus brief to the Minnesota 4th District Court citing a Minnesota Supreme Court ruling 38 years ago that found that people who have sex in closed stalls in public restrooms "have a reasonable expectation of privacy."

The brief was filed in defence of Republican Senator Larry Craig who was arrested and charged with lewd conduct in June 2007.

ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero said, "The real motive behind secret sting operations like the one that resulted in Sen. Craig's arrest is not to stop people from inappropriate activity. It is to make as many arrests as possible - arrests that sometimes unconstitutionally trap innocent people." Solicitation for private sex is protected speech under the First Amendment, the ACLU argues. Read more