Privacy Rights: Cases Lost and Causes Won Before the Supreme Court

Privacy Rights: Cases Lost and Causes Won Before the Supreme Court is a unique and timely study of the judicial process as it confronts four privacy issues: birth control, gay rights, abortion, and the right to die. The moral questions surrounding these subjects create intense and enduring debates about the scope and limits of the right to privacy. In four historic cases the right to privacy was struck down by the Supreme Court; in four later cases these rulings were overturned. Why? This book explains the original failure by analyzing attorneys’ mistakes, miscommunication in the judicial conference, attitudes and policy predilections of the justices, and the negative attitudes of state officials and interest groups. The ultimate win for privacy rights is an exciting story involving well know cases like Lawrence v. Texas, Planned Parenthood v. Casey, Griswold v. Connecticut, and the case of Terri Schiavo. Through the personal and legal details of these dramatic stories, the debate on privacy rights comes alive.

Alice Fleetwood Bartee is professor of political science at Missouri State University.