In the eight years since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states may not criminalize private homosexual conduct, courts and legislatures across the country have struggled to define gay rights. The debate changed for both sides after a watershed 2003 Supreme Court ruling in a case that originated in Houston. The court voted 6-3 to guarantee privacy rights for gay men and lesbians – reversing a 1986 decision that permitted states to outlaw homosexual acts, even in homes. The Houston man at the center of the groundbreaking decision died last month of a heart condition. John Geddes Lawrence was 68.

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