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Privacy & Reproductive Rights
Eisenstadt v. Baird
Decided: 1972
In brief
Extended the right to contraception to unmarried individuals.
The Court's ruling in depth
Reasoning that the right of privacy 'is the right of the individual, married or single, to be free from unwarranted governmental intrusion,' the Court struck down Massachusetts's ban on distributing contraceptives to unmarried persons. Eisenstadt was a critical doctrinal bridge from Griswold to Roe.