JACKSON, Miss. - Bill would set penalties for funeral protests

OFF THE WIRE
Emily Wagster Pettus
 armytimes.com

Some Mississippi lawmakers want to impose penalties for any funeral demonstrations like those carried out by Westboro Baptist Church.
The group from Kansas has been protesting for years at military funerals with signs blaming U.S. military deaths on the nation's tolerance of homosexuality.
State Rep. Willie Bailey said he thought Westboro's picketing was tasteless enough. But when the group initially planned to picket the funeral of a 9-year-old girl killed in the Arizona shooting rampage, Bailey said things had gone too far.
"It's one thing for a family to go through a normal process of mourning," said Bailey, D-Greenville. "It's another thing to be subjected to humiliation and anger and outrage because some group wants to advance their political agenda."
Even though the Westboro group backed off and didn't protest at the funeral of Christina Taylor Green in Arizona, Bailey said he'll ask the Mississippi House to support a bill that would set penalties for protesting at funerals in this state.
"We're advancing the bill so people can have a discussion about it," said Bailey, who's chairman of the House Judiciary B Committee.
The bill originally proposed penalties of up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine. The Judiciary B Committee changed that to one year in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Bailey said he knows there are potential constitutional problems about limiting expression, but he said those could be sorted out in court if the bill becomes law.
It's unclear how the bill will fare in House debate, or if it would survive in the Senate. Lawmakers from both parties in both chambers have said they're reluctant to limit people's free-speech rights, but those concerns would be balanced with some members' desire to pass a bill presented as a protection for mourning military families.
Some other states have tried to limit protests at funerals. Missouri enacted a law in 2006 that banned picketing at or near a funeral from one hour before until one hour after a service. Because of concerns about court challenges, Missouri enacted a separate law to set a 300-foot buffer zone between funerals and protesters.
This past August, a federal judge declared both Missouri laws unconstitutional.
Protests rarely occur at funerals in Mississippi, where drivers frequently pull to the side of the road to let funeral processions pass.
In 2006, when the mayor of Laurel heard Westboro members might protest at a soldier's funeral there, more than 100 members of the motorcycle group the Patriot Guard Riders showed up to keep any potential protesters away. None showed up.
Supporters of the bill say they're trying to head off potential problems.
"There's just a certain amount of respect you ought to show at any funeral, but especially for our military members. They're laying their lives on the line every day to protect our country," said Rep. Bryant Clark, D-Pickens.
Clark signed on as a co-sponsor of the bill. The primary sponsor is Rep. Omeria Scott, D-Laurel.
The bill is House Bill 1215.