Loving v. VirginiaSupreme Court Case

1967

Julie Sohnen

Virginia’s “Anti-Miscegenation Statute” was passed in 1924

It is a ban on interracial marriage for residents of Virginia

Mildred Jeter, an African-American woman was married to Richard Loving, a Caucasian man, in June 1958, violating this state law

Even though they were married in Washington D.C., by living in Virginia they broke this law

Jeter

Loving

• October 1958—Grand jury indicted the Lovings for violating Virginia’s ban on marriages between different races

• They were found guilty and sentenced to 1 year in prison

• However, the judge postponed their sentence for 25 years on the condition that the couple leaves and does not return to Virginia.

Richard and Mildred moved to Washington D.C. They claimed that Virginia’s rule violates the Equal

Protection Clause of the Constitution, hoping to completely eliminate the sentence

They hired a lawyer, Bernard Cohen, in 1963, to try and cancel their jail sentence of one year

The Court allows the Lovings to present their case (against constitutionality of Virginia’s ban on intermarriage) to the Supreme Court of Virginia

It’s denied In 1966, the Lovings appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court At first it is denied Later though, in 1967, a trial was held on April 10 A unanimous vote in the Lovings’ favor demolished

Virginia’s law for good Today, gay rights activists try to use Loving v. Virginia to

help their case, but (most) courts only apply this to racial issues

The End