Loving v. Virginia arose when Mildred Jeter, a Black woman, and Richard Loving, a white man, were sentenced to a year in prison for their interracial marriage in Virginia. The Lovings had been residents of Caroline County and married in Washington, D.C., where interracial marriage was legal. Upon returning home, they faced arrest under Virginia's Racial Integrity Act of 1924, which prohibited interracial unions. In response, the couple sought legal assistance from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which took on their case. The case eventually reached the Supreme Court, where the pivotal question was whether state laws banning interracial marriage were constitutional. On June 12, 1967, the Court unanimously ruled in favor of the Lovings. Chief Justice Earl Warren delivered the opinion, stating that the state's anti-miscegenation laws were an infringement on both the Equal Protection and Due Process Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. This landmark decision not only overturned the Lovings' conviction but also invalidated similar laws in 16 states at the time. The ruling was significant in advancing civil rights and affirming the principle of equality under the law.