the book details the landmark gay rights case, lawrence vs. texas. the ruling made same-sex sexual activity neil all u.s. states and territories, and paved the way for same-sex marriage laws. >> dale carpenter, you have written a fine book on the supreme court case of lawrence vs. texas. a book that sort of tells the story from the beginning to the end. let start with a big picture question at the end why was the lawrence case important? i. >> guest: i would say this is one of the most civil liberty decisions in the supreme court in the past 5 5 years or so and the most important decision so far for the rights of gay men and lesbians. so, this is an opinion that is important to a great many people, and i think will be long remembered in american constitutional history. >> host: tell me why. there was one sort of law in effect prior to lawrence, and lawrence changed the law in a big way. tell me about the -- heading into the lawrence case, where the law was before and where it was after. >> guest: well, in a series of cases and laws around the country

find support for both positions but i'm quite certain many of the phrases in his opinion in lawrence vs. texas about the dignity of gay americans and the importance of relationships to them, will find their way into any opinion. >> host: we only have a couple minutes left. before we finish, i'd like to ask you -- you went down and did a lot of reporting on this and talked to john lawrence. and both men have passed away in the last couple years after the case was decided. tell us a little bit about lawrence and garner. >> guest: they were both people who grew up with a humble background. not much education. garner was one of the -- the tenth of ten chirp in -- children in a black baptist family. never had a permanent home or job, never owned a car, shifted from house to house. john lawrence did have a steady job as a medical technologist, but neither he nor tyrone were ever involved in any kind of civil rights movement or civil rights causes until the case came along. tyrone garner died in 2006, bat year after i interviewed him, and john lawrence died last november in 2011, about six months aft