[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 74 (Tuesday, June 7, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S6149]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              40TH ANNIVERSARY OF GRISWOLD V. CONNECTICUT

  Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I rise today to commemorate the 40th 
anniversary of the Supreme Court's crucial decision in Griswold v. 
Connecticut.
  Forty years ago, Estelle Griswold and Dr. Lee Buxton were arrested 
and convicted for counseling married couples on birth control methods, 
and prescribing married couples contraceptives. They challenged their 
convictions, and the Supreme Court overturned them, ruling that the 
Connecticut law under which they were charged was unconstitutional. The 
Court found that the Government had no place in interfering in the 
intimately private marital bedroom. Justice William O. Douglas, in 
writing the Court's opinion, scoffed at the notion of police searching 
private bedrooms for evidence of contraceptive use. This landmark 
decision, cited in countless numbers of decisions since then on the 
constitutional right to privacy, guarantees the right of married 
couples to use birth control.
  Yet the relevance of this decision goes far beyond contraceptive use. 
In rendering its decision, the Court recognized a ``zone of privacy'' 
arising from several constitutional guarantees. The Court acknowledged 
that while the right of privacy is not enumerated specifically in 
anyone place, it is inherent in several areas within the Bill of Rights 
and throughout the Constitution. This very American notion of privacy 
served as a cornerstone of precedent, paving the way for other 
decisions and further solidifying as established law the constitutional 
right to privacy. Roe v. Wade, guaranteeing a woman's right to choose, 
was a logical application of Griswold.
  Today, Americans' privacy rights are threatened on many fronts. The 
Government is asserting greater and greater investigative powers. Some 
pharmacists are refusing to fill prescriptions for legal 
contraceptives. The anniversary of Griswold gives us all an opportunity 
to reflect on the importance of preserving our privacy rights. The 
Court recognized that we are born with privacy rights as Americans, and 
we have a particular responsibility as Senators to protect these rights 
for our constituents.

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