Loving v.
Virginia
(1967)
Mildred Jeter, a Black woman, and Richard Loving, a white man, were residents of
Virginia
where interracial marriage was barred by law. They got married in 1958 in the
District of Columbia
. When they returned to
Virginia
, they were arrested and sentenced to a year in prison for violating the ban. The US Supreme Court unanimously overturned their conviction. Stating that marriage was a basic civil right, the court ruled that "the freedom to marry, or not to marry, a person of another race resides with the individual and cannot be infringed by the State."
http://www.oyez.org/cases/1960-1969/1966/1966_395/