Military Funeral Protest

Military Funeral Protest Fight in High Court

WASHINGTON – Supreme Court justices on Wednesday pondered the vexing question of whether the father of a dead Marine should win his lawsuit against a fundamentalist church group that picketed his son's funeral. Westboro Church protest at military funerals because church members say God is angry at America for its general acceptance of homosexuality, and protesting at military funerals and many believe it an effective way to draw attention to their cause.

This case started four years ago in Maryland at a Marine's funeral, when members of Westboro Baptist Church protested disrupted the proceedings of the private burial services for the Marine. The Marine’s Dad, Albert Snyder later sued the Westboro Baptist Church for causing him health problems, due to emotional stress. Snyder won 11 million in the suit, but by the time it got to the Federal Court it was thrown out, because of the fact of the churches First Amendment Rights.
This leads to several arguments such as: Is a First Amendment issue, or a matter of whether a private individual can sue for the infliction of emotional pain and invasion of privacy ‘, “Is it freedom of speech or pure harassment?”, and “In the First Amendment rights as to whether hateful speech is protected speech.
Several people take Snyder’s side in the case, : A statement from the Committee for Freedom of the Gregg Leslie Press stated "Most speech will offend somebody and we just need to be able to protect that. We can't have rules that make speech illegal or subject to incredible penalties just because it offends
people," Margie Phelps, another daughter and a lawyer who will argue the church’s side before the Supreme Court, called the case “the ultimate litmus test” for America’s belief in free speech. Church and before worship service at Westboro. Media organizations and First Amendment scholars say ruling against the church would undermine the core protections of the First Amendment and open speakers to liability when the listener disagrees with the message. Fourteen groups, including U.S. senators in 48 states including Maryland, are backing Albert Snyder's cause. Sean Summers, Snyder’s attorney argues "You can't harass private families, especially at a private event like a funeral," Their brief, written by longtime Supreme Court practitioner Walter Dellinger, argues that the Phelps’s have a right to free speech but not to “hijack a private funeral as a vehicle for expression of their own hate.” Such willful attempts to insult and invade privacy are not constitutionally protected, they say. “Either the court is going to make some new First Amendment law that says funerals are different, which certainly would be a popular position,” Englert said. “Or the court is going to say, ‘Let’s take the most obnoxious speech in America today, and let’s reaffirm that even obnoxious speech is protected.’ “ I agree with Westboro Church members, they are within their “Constitution Rights”, when they protest funerals. After all, they do abide by the law, by getting permission and stay within their limits. However, ethically the protesters should not be allowed to protest at private funeral, this is not the time or place, because Funerals are mourners for their loved one and should be highly respected. I would like to see a ratification of the First Amendment to protect people from protesters during private ceremonies of any kind.