Powell v. State
Supreme Court of Georgia
510 S.E.2d 18 (1998)
Relevant factsFree
Powell (defendant) was charged with rape and aggravated sodomy involving his wife's 17-year-old niece, but the jury acquitted him of those charges -- finding the state had not proven force -- while convicting him only of sodomy under a statute criminalizing the act regardless of consent between adults in private. Powell appealed, arguing the sodomy statute unconstitutionally infringed on Georgia's state constitutional right to privacy as applied to private, non-forcible conduct between consenting adults.
IssueFree
Whether morality alone is a sufficiently compelling justification for state regulation of private, consensual sexual activity between adults.