The laws on the books in many states testify to a time when the nation apparently advocated a more overt Christian morality than it does now. In about half the states there are laws against adultery, sodomy, and fornication, laws typically ignored by prosecutors.
But in northern Wisconsin, 28-year-old Donna E. Carroll faces trial for violating a nineteenth-century law requiring sexual fidelity within marriage. According to Wisconsin law, adultery is a felony, punishable by as much as two years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
The prosecuting attorney claims there is strong evidence a crime was committed and that he is merely doing his duty. Attorneys for Carroll claim the statute under which she has been charged is unconstitutional, and that a trial would violate her right to privacy and due process. They also question the fairness of the charges. According to the New York Times, Carroll’s former husband, Robert, who filed the charges, has confessed to an extramarital affair of his own. (He was not charged because it could not be established that he committed the crime in Wisconsin.)
Meanwhile, another law reflecting the moral posture of a previous generation is being tested in South Carolina, where atheist Herb Silverman has become a third-party candidate for governor. Silverman has said he does not really want the job, but does want to challenge the state’s constitution, which reads in part, “No person shall be eligible for the office of governor who denies the existence of the Supreme Being.”
The state’s election commission is considering challenging Silverman’s candidacy. Arkansas and Pennsylvania also declare nonbelievers unqualified to hold some public offices.
