Thread: Westboro Baptist's Phelps-Roper sues St. Joseph, Mo., over f

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The daughter of Westboro Baptist Church founder Fred Phelps has sued the city of St. Joseph over its ordinance banning protests at soldiers’ funerals.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, asks a judge to declare the ordinance and its enforcement unconstitutional.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri filed the suit on behalf of Shirley Phelps-Roper. She said the suit is the only such action pending against a municipality in the country, although many others have passed similar laws.

"They are standing the shoes of municipalities all over this country," Phelps-Roper said.

Phelps-Roper is pursuing a similar suit against the state of Missouri. On Oct. 31, a three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that members of the Topeka-based church could picket soldiers’ funerals in Missouri. A lower court earlier had upheld the constitutionality of Missouri’s laws banning such protests.

Westboro church members — who believe that God is punishing America for tolerating homosexuality, abortion and divorce — have complained that such laws violate their freedom of speech. They have drawn harsh criticism across the country for picketing at funerals of servicemen and servicewomen.

A spokeswoman for City Attorney Lisa Robertson said St. Joseph had not yet been served with the suit and declined to comment.

http://www.kansas.com/news/breaking/story/657315.html

Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com

A side note. I am a member of the Patriot Guard Riders which was formed to protect the families of fallen soldiers from these nut cases. As of now there are well over 120,000 Patriot Guard members in all 50 states and we stand ready at the request of the family of ANY fallen hero to stand the Flag line. Please visit one of the links below for the Patriot Guard.

This guy and his group are lunatics. Funerals are private events! The ACLU and this group need to be put down on this for once and for all

This guy and his group are lunatics. Funerals are private events!

Exactly. Wonder how they'd feel if it were protests at the births of those who belong to a specific group? Future terriorists or whatever.....insane.