ianstone
10-06-2010, 03:29 PM
High Court Struggles With Military Funerals Case
by Scott Neuman
http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2010/10/06/scotus2_wide.jpg?t=1286389281&s=4 Carolyn Kaster/AP Members of the Westboro Baptist Church picket in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
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October 6, 2010
The Supreme Court on Wednesday weighed the thorny First Amendment issues raised by a fundamentalist church bent on picketing U.S. service members' funerals and a grieving father who wants it to stop.
The justices heard oral arguments in the case brought by Albert Snyder of York, Pa., against the head of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan. Snyder's son, Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, died in Iraq in 2006, and the congregation picketed his private funeral with signs declaring "Thank God for Dead Soldiers" and "God Hates the USA."
http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2010/10/06/scotus1.jpg?t=1286388640&s=2 Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Albert Snyder leaves the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., after Wednesday's arguments. His son's funeral was picketed by members of the Westboro Baptist Church, which preaches that U.S. deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq are punishment for Americans' immorality.
The church, led by the Rev. Fred Phelps, also posted a poem on its website that attacked Snyder and his ex-wife for the way they brought up Matthew.
Snyder wants the Supreme Court to reinstate a lower court's $5 million verdict against the church for intentional infliction of emotional distress and privacy violations.
Westboro members have picketed hundreds of military funerals to make their point that U.S. deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq are punishment for Americans' immorality, including tolerance of homosexuality and abortion.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said the question is whether the First Amendment must tolerate "exploiting this bereaved family."
There was no clear answer from the court.
Justice Stephen Breyer said the Internet aspect of the case, Snyder v. Phelps, troubled him because the church was saying something "very obnoxious" about private individuals. "To what extent can they put that on the Internet?" Breyer said. "I don't know what the rules ought to be."
The case pits Snyder's right to grieve privately against the church members' right to express their views, no matter how offensive.
Related NPR Stories
http://media.npr.org/assets/news/2010/10/05/snyder_sq.jpg?t=1286311605&s=11 (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130357711) High Court Asked To Limit Military Funeral Protests (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130357711)
A Marine's father sued picketers who held objectionable signs at services for his son, other troops.
"No American should ever be required to apologize for following his or her conscience," said Margie Phelps, a daughter of Fred Phelps and the lawyer who argued the case for the church. "The mere fact that you take offense at words or call yourself having your feelings hurt over words is not enough to shut up the speech," she said outside the Supreme Court building.
Sean Summers, an attorney who argued on Snyder's behalf, said he wanted to make clear to the justices that free speech wasn't the issue.
"I hope they realize that this is not just a case about speech, but about harassment, targeted harassment of a private person's funeral," he said.
Several major media organizations, including NPR, have filed a "friend of the court" brief that acknowledges the "inexplicable and hateful" nature of the church's message but argues that "to silence a fringe messenger because of distastefulness of the message is antithetical to the First Amendment's most basic precepts." The American Civil Liberties Union filed a similar brief.
Forty-eight states, 42 U.S. senators and veterans groups have sided with Snyder, asking the court to shield funerals from the Phelpses' "psychological terrorism."
Westboro members turned out in advance of the argument Wednesday morning, to march in front of the court with placards of the type they've been carrying to military funerals. One young boy held up a sign that read, "God Hates You."
Snyder won an $11 million verdict against the church for intentional infliction of emotional distress, among other claims. A judge reduced the award to $5 million before the federal appeals court in Richmond, Va., threw out the verdict altogether, citing the church's First Amendment rights.
"The Phelpses took away my last moment with him on Earth. ... They tarnished his funeral," Snyder told NPR earlier.
"This was a funeral," he said. "This wasn't a parade going down the street. I shouldn't have to look away from anything at my own child's funeral. That's absurd."
NPR's Nina Totenberg contributed to this report, which also contains material from The Associated Press
by Scott Neuman
http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2010/10/06/scotus2_wide.jpg?t=1286389281&s=4 Carolyn Kaster/AP Members of the Westboro Baptist Church picket in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
text size A (javascript: void();) A (javascript: void();) A (javascript: void();)
October 6, 2010
The Supreme Court on Wednesday weighed the thorny First Amendment issues raised by a fundamentalist church bent on picketing U.S. service members' funerals and a grieving father who wants it to stop.
The justices heard oral arguments in the case brought by Albert Snyder of York, Pa., against the head of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan. Snyder's son, Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, died in Iraq in 2006, and the congregation picketed his private funeral with signs declaring "Thank God for Dead Soldiers" and "God Hates the USA."
http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2010/10/06/scotus1.jpg?t=1286388640&s=2 Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Albert Snyder leaves the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., after Wednesday's arguments. His son's funeral was picketed by members of the Westboro Baptist Church, which preaches that U.S. deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq are punishment for Americans' immorality.
The church, led by the Rev. Fred Phelps, also posted a poem on its website that attacked Snyder and his ex-wife for the way they brought up Matthew.
Snyder wants the Supreme Court to reinstate a lower court's $5 million verdict against the church for intentional infliction of emotional distress and privacy violations.
Westboro members have picketed hundreds of military funerals to make their point that U.S. deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq are punishment for Americans' immorality, including tolerance of homosexuality and abortion.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said the question is whether the First Amendment must tolerate "exploiting this bereaved family."
There was no clear answer from the court.
Justice Stephen Breyer said the Internet aspect of the case, Snyder v. Phelps, troubled him because the church was saying something "very obnoxious" about private individuals. "To what extent can they put that on the Internet?" Breyer said. "I don't know what the rules ought to be."
The case pits Snyder's right to grieve privately against the church members' right to express their views, no matter how offensive.
Related NPR Stories
http://media.npr.org/assets/news/2010/10/05/snyder_sq.jpg?t=1286311605&s=11 (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130357711) High Court Asked To Limit Military Funeral Protests (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130357711)
A Marine's father sued picketers who held objectionable signs at services for his son, other troops.
"No American should ever be required to apologize for following his or her conscience," said Margie Phelps, a daughter of Fred Phelps and the lawyer who argued the case for the church. "The mere fact that you take offense at words or call yourself having your feelings hurt over words is not enough to shut up the speech," she said outside the Supreme Court building.
Sean Summers, an attorney who argued on Snyder's behalf, said he wanted to make clear to the justices that free speech wasn't the issue.
"I hope they realize that this is not just a case about speech, but about harassment, targeted harassment of a private person's funeral," he said.
Several major media organizations, including NPR, have filed a "friend of the court" brief that acknowledges the "inexplicable and hateful" nature of the church's message but argues that "to silence a fringe messenger because of distastefulness of the message is antithetical to the First Amendment's most basic precepts." The American Civil Liberties Union filed a similar brief.
Forty-eight states, 42 U.S. senators and veterans groups have sided with Snyder, asking the court to shield funerals from the Phelpses' "psychological terrorism."
Westboro members turned out in advance of the argument Wednesday morning, to march in front of the court with placards of the type they've been carrying to military funerals. One young boy held up a sign that read, "God Hates You."
Snyder won an $11 million verdict against the church for intentional infliction of emotional distress, among other claims. A judge reduced the award to $5 million before the federal appeals court in Richmond, Va., threw out the verdict altogether, citing the church's First Amendment rights.
"The Phelpses took away my last moment with him on Earth. ... They tarnished his funeral," Snyder told NPR earlier.
"This was a funeral," he said. "This wasn't a parade going down the street. I shouldn't have to look away from anything at my own child's funeral. That's absurd."
NPR's Nina Totenberg contributed to this report, which also contains material from The Associated Press