The Many Faces of Overcriminalization: From Morals and Mattress Tags to Overfederalization

not repealed laws regulating sexual morality.Approximately one fourth of the states, and the District of Columbia, retain laws making fornication and cohabitation a crime, 11 and about half of the states, and the military, make adultery a crime.12 Other state laws regulate the commercialization of sex, prohibiting prostitution and related activities.13 The Supreme Court's recent decision in Lawrence v.Texas 14 raises the issue of whether some or 11.See Melanie C. Falco, Comment, The Road Not Taken: Using the Eighth Amendment to Strike Down Criminal Punishment For Engaging in Consensual Sexual Acts, 82 N.C.L. REV.723, 738 (2004) (listing Idaho (IDAHO CODE § 18-6603 (Michie 2003)), Illinois (ILL.COMP.STAT.ANN.5/11-8 (2003)), Massachusetts (MASS.GEN.LAWS ANN.ch.272 § 18 (West 2003)), Mississippi (MISS.CODE.ANN.§ 97-29-1 (2003)), North Carolina (N.C.GEN.STAT.§ 14-184 (2003)), North Dakota (N.D. CENT.CODE § 12.1-20-08 (2003)), South Carolina (S.C.CODE ANN.§ 16-15-60 (Law.Co-op.2003)), Utah (UTAH CODE ANN.§ 76-7-104 (2003)), Virginia (VA.CODE ANN.§ 18.2-344 (Michie 2003)), and West Virginia (W.VA.CODE § 61-8-3 (2003)) along with the District of Columbia (D.C.CODE ANN.§ 22-1602 (2001)) as states that still make fornication illegal).12. See id.(identifying statutes from Florida (FLA.STAT.ANN.§ 798.02 (West 2000)) and Michigan (MICH.COMP.LAWS ANN.§ 750.335 (West 2003)) that make cohabitation a crime); id. at 744 (listing statutes from Alabama (ALA.CODE 13A-13-2 (2002)), Arizona (ARIZ.REV.STAT.13-1408 (2003)), Colorado (COLO.REV.STAT.18-6-501 (2002)), Florida (FLA.STAT.ANN.798.01 (West 2003)), Georgia (GA.CODE ANN.16-6-19 (2003)), Idaho (IDAHO CODE 18-6601 (Michie 2003)), Illinois (720 ILL.COMP.STAT.ANN.5/11-7 (West 2002)), Kansas (KAN.STAT.ANN.21-3507 (2001)), Massachusetts (MASS.ANN.LAWS ch.272, 14 (Law.Co-op.2003)), Michigan (MICH.COMP.LAWS ANN.750.30 (West 2003)), Minnesota (MINN.STAT.ANN.609.36 (West 2003)), Mississippi (MISS.CODE ANN.97-29-1 (2003)), New Hampshire (N.H. REV.STAT.ANN.645.3 (2003)), New York (N.Y.Penal Law 255.17 (McKinney 2002)), North Carolina (N.C.GEN.STAT.14-184 (2001)), North Dakota (N.D. CENT.CODE 12.1-20-09 (2003)), Oklahoma (OKLA.STAT.ANN.tit.21, 871 (West 2002)), Rhode Island (R.I.GEN.LAWS 11-6-2 (2002)), South Carolina (S.C.CODE ANN.16-15-60 (Law.Co-op.2003)), Utah (UTAH CODE ANN.76-7-103 (2003)), Virginia (VA.CODE ANN.18.2-365 (Michie 2003)), West Virginia (W.VA.CODE ANN.61-8-3 (Michie 2003)), Wisconsin (WIS.STAT.ANN.944.16 (West Supp.2002)) and the District of Columbia (D.C.CODE ANN 22-201 (2001)) that make adultery a crime, and providing source material on the military law definition of adultery as an offense).See also Traci Sheallbetter Stratton, Note, No More Messing Around: Substantive Due Process Challenges to State Laws Prohibiting Fornication, 73 WASH.L. REV.767, 767 n.2 (1998) (confirming the above list of states that make adultery a crime).13.All U.S. states criminalize exchanging sex for money (with limited exceptions in Nevada), and many states also criminalize adjunct activities such as pimping, keeping a place of prostitution, or paying for sex.See Sylvia A. Law, Commercial Sex: Beyond Decriminalization, 73 S. CAL.L