In the field of human rights, violation of the bodily integrity of another is regarded as an unethical infringement, intrusive, and possibly criminal.
In Griswold v. Connecticut (1965) the Court supported women's rights to obtain birth control (and thus, retain reproductive autonomy) without marital consent.
Such action can be described using the principle of supported autonomy,[14] a concept that was developed to describe unique situations in mental health (examples include the forced feeding of a person dying from the eating disorder anorexia nervosa, or the temporary treatment of a person living with a psychotic disorder with antipsychotic medication).
One unique example of a Canadian law that promotes bodily integrity is Ontario's Health Care Consent Act.
[15] Though bodily integrity is afforded to every human being, women are more often affected in violations of it, via unwanted pregnancy, and limited access to contraception.
[17] In the wake of the highly publicized Jerry Sandusky trial,[18] parents have been increasingly encouraged to promote their child's sense of bodily integrity as a method of reducing children's vulnerability to being victims of sexual violence, human trafficking and child prostitution.