Michigan lawmakers on “zombie bill” killing spree, seek to decriminalize adultery and sodomy

Michigan lawmakers heard testimony to repeal laws criminalizing adultery and same-sex sexual conduct in committee meetings Tuesday, with supporters for the changes saying the current laws are “zombies” from the 1930s and need to be updated.

Michigan is one of the few remaining states criminalizing same-sex sexual conduct under its laws concerning “crimes against nature” or sodomy.

One of the lawmakers spearheading the effort to remove the section of Michigan law that criminalizes and punishes same-sex sexual conduct as an “abominable and detestable” crime against nature on par with bestiality, spoke to the Michigan House Criminal Justice Committee Tuesday about the need for Michigan’s law to be altered.

Though the laws on the books in a few states banning same-sex sexual conduct are unenforceable under a 2003 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Lawrence v. Texas, state Rep. Noah Arbit (D-West Bloomfield), reasoned that decision could fall and Michigan’s 1931 “zombie law” on sodomy could come to haunt the state.

As the federal right to an abortion was stripped in the summer of 2022, with the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe. v Wade, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in a concurring opinion, that since the court’s decision was rooted in the interpretation of the 14th Amendment’s due process clause, other Supreme Court decisions examining the clause should be reevaluated.

Such cases include Griswold v. Connecticut concerning birth control usage, Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage, and Lawrence v. Texas which prevents states from criminalizing consensual sexual conduct between same-sex partners. 

“I believe Justice Thomas is sincere in his desire to recriminalize these intimate acts, and he is not alone,” Arbit said. “The assault on these rights is clear, motivated in part by an intense religious bigotry against gay people.”

And as the leadership of the Michigan state House is set to transfer back to Republicans in January after the party won a majority of seats in November, Arbit said it is particularly imperative to dismantle Michigan’s laws against same-sex sexual conduct while Democrats have the gavel. He noted the conduct of Rep. Josh Schriver (R-Oxford) as an example of individuals who would seek to remove rights from the LGBTQ+ community.

On Monday, Schriver posted on “X” “Make gay marriage illegal again. This is not remotely controversial, nor extreme.”

Schriver has a history of controversy online, being stripped of his committee assignment in the House and his office staff by Michigan House Speaker Joe Tate (D-Detroit) for making posts on social media revolving around the “Great Replacement” theory, linked to white supremacist movements.

“Personally, I think the idea of ripping apart loving families is extreme,” Arbit said. “Just as I think the idea of the state being empowered by statute to arrest private adult citizens for engaging in consensual sex acts of their choosing is extreme.”

House Bills 4431, 4432 and 4433 would reword the “sodomy” section of state law to instead specifically address criminal penalties associated with bestiality, cutting the word “sodomy” from the section of law.

The bills passed the Michigan House Criminal Justice Committee along partisan lines on Tuesday with unanimous Democratic support. Two Republicans passed on voting, including Minority Chair of the House Judiciary Committee Rep. Graham Filler (R-St. Johns) who said after committee that the bill was posted late to the agenda and so he passed at least for now.

“I look forward to learning more about it,” Filler said.

On the Senate side, lawmakers looked at the state’s largely unenforced criminalization of adultery, where cheating on a spouse in Michigan constitutes a felony.

The law criminalizing adultery in Michigan is “a relic of a bygone era that has outlived its purpose”, Kyle Zawacki of the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan testified during the Michigan Senate Civil Rights, Judiciary, and Public Safety Committee Tuesday.

Michigan passed no-fault divorce in 1972, eliminating the need to establish wrongdoing in order to gain a divorce, Zawacki pointed out. Slaying the adultery “zombie” law would ensure it is not selectively enforced and also helps to eliminate dated stigma and discrimination when it comes to infidelity. 

Michigan is behind on the times as only two other states classify adultery as a felony, Zawacki said. Senate Bills 1083, 1084 and 1085 would eradicate the criminalization of adultery.

The bills passed unanimously out of committee.