Skinner v. Oklahoma ex rel. Williamson (1940)
- Docket
- 782
- Decided
- 1940-1955-
Summary
Question: Did the Act violate the Fourteenth Amendment? Conclusion: In an opinion written by William Orville Douglas, the unanimous Court held that the Act violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Court reasoned that certain crimes, such as embezzlement, were excluded from the Act’s jurisdiction without explanation or reason. Moreover, the Court reasoned that because of the social and biological implications of reproduction and the irreversibility of sterilization operations, compulsory sterilization laws should be subject to strict scrutiny. In his concurrence, Chief Justice Harlan F. Stone stated that he disagreed with the majority opinion’s reliance on the Equal Protection Clause and instead cited the Due Process Clause to prevent Skinner from being sterilized.