What States Is Sodomy Illegal In: Enforcement and Expungement

Sodomy is not illegal in any U.S. state. The Supreme Court’s 2003 ruling in Lawrence v. Texas struck down every state law that criminalized private, consensual sexual conduct between adults, so no one can be prosecuted for it anywhere in the country.1Justia. Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003) That said, roughly a dozen states still carry sodomy statutes in their criminal codes. The text sits there because legislatures never formally removed it, not because the laws have any legal force.

States That Still Have Sodomy Laws on the Books

These statutes are often called “zombie laws.” They appear in official statute databases and in background check systems, but a prosecutor who tried to bring charges under one would see the case dismissed immediately. The penalties below are what the statutes threaten on paper. They are not what anyone actually faces for private, consensual conduct.

Kansas is a particularly odd case because its statute singles out same-sex sodomy while treating identical heterosexual conduct differently, a distinction the Supreme Court has ruled against twice.7Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes. Kansas Statutes 21-5504 – Criminal Sodomy; Aggravated Criminal Sodomy The language is still in the 2025 edition of the state statutes.

Why None of These Laws Can Be Enforced

In Lawrence v. Texas, the Supreme Court held that a Texas law criminalizing consensual sexual conduct between same-sex adults violated the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.1Justia. Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003) The decision overturned Bowers v. Hardwick and recognized a constitutional right to privacy in intimate conduct. Every state-level sodomy prohibition fell with it.

The Supremacy Clause of Article VI makes that ruling binding on every state regardless of what the state’s criminal code still says.11Library of Congress. U.S. Constitution – Article VI A local prosecutor who tried to charge someone under a leftover sodomy statute would face immediate dismissal and almost certainly a federal civil rights lawsuit. The protection for private, consensual acts between adults is absolute.

What Lawrence Does Not Cover

Justice Kennedy’s majority opinion was deliberate about the limits of the ruling. It applied to “two adults who, with full and mutual consent from each other, engaged in sexual practices” inside a private home. The opinion specifically noted it did not address minors, coerced encounters, public conduct, or prostitution.1Justia. Lawrence v. Texas, 539 U.S. 558 (2003)

Public indecency laws are still fully enforceable. Sexual activity in a park, restroom, or other public space can bring charges under general indecency or disorderly conduct statutes in every state. Non-consensual sexual acts, including forcible sodomy, remain serious felonies everywhere and carry severe penalties. Those offenses have nothing to do with the consensual conduct Lawrence protects.

Why Dead Statutes Still Matter

Removing a law takes the same process as passing one: committee hearings, floor votes in both chambers, and the governor’s signature. For many legislatures, pulling an unenforceable statute off the books is not a priority when the law has no practical effect. Some legislators also resist the vote itself in conservative districts, seeing any ballot on sodomy as a political risk even when the law is clearly dead.

The practical fallout is more than symbolic. Legal experts point to a chilling effect: people see the text in a statute database and reasonably worry they could be prosecuted. That fear discourages reporting crimes, seeking legal help, or renting apartments in states where the code still labels their private conduct a felony. The statutes also surface in background check databases, which can confuse employers and landlords who don’t realize the law is unenforceable.

States That Have Repealed or Narrowed Their Sodomy Laws

A handful of states have scrubbed the unenforceable language from their codes. Maryland is the clearest example. In 2020, the legislature repealed the common law crime of sodomy under Section 3-321 of the Criminal Law article, which now reads simply: “The common law crime of sodomy has been repealed.”12Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Code Criminal Law 3-321 The companion statute under Section 3-322, covering “unnatural or perverted sexual practice,” was repealed in 2023.13New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. Maryland Code – Title 3 Other Crimes Against the Person

Minnesota moved to repeal its sodomy, adultery, and fornication statutes through legislation introduced in 2022, with the repeal of Section 609.293 set to take effect that year.14Minnesota House of Representatives. Bill Calls for Repeal of MN’s Discriminatory and Outdated Fornication, Sodomy and Adultery Statutes Virginia narrowed rather than fully repealed its law. The current version of Section 18.2-361 covers only bestiality and incestuous acts; the language that once applied to consensual sexual conduct between unrelated adults has been stripped out.15Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-361 – Crimes Against Nature; Penalty

Clearing an Old Sodomy Conviction

Some people still carry criminal records for consensual conduct that was prosecuted before 2003. Most states have general expungement or record-sealing statutes that allow a petition to clear certain convictions. The process typically involves filing paperwork with the court that handled the original case, paying a filing fee, and sometimes attending a hearing.

Whether a pre-Lawrence sodomy conviction qualifies depends entirely on the individual state’s eligibility rules. Some states limit expungement to misdemeanors or require a waiting period after the sentence is completed. No federal law requires states to automatically vacate these convictions, so the burden falls on the individual. Anyone in that situation should consult a criminal defense attorney in the state where the conviction occurred, because the procedural requirements and eligibility rules differ significantly from place to place.