GotZoom
Senior Member
FRANKFORT, Ky. -- The American Civil Liberties Union is challenging a Kentucky law aimed at preventing protests from disrupting funerals for soldiers killed in Iraq.
Members of a Kansas Baptist church have protested at military funerals, claiming soldiers' deaths are a sign that God is punishing America for tolerating homosexuality.
The new law, signed by Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher in March, bans protests within 300 feet of memorial services, wakes and burials. Violators can be charged with first-degree disorderly conduct, punishable by up to a year in jail.
The ACLU said the Kentucky law goes too far in limiting speech and expression.
The ACLU argues that people could unknowingly violate it by stopping to chat on a public sidewalk near a funeral home. The civil liberties group said it could also prevent pro-military people from participating in counter-protests outside memorial services.
A spokesman for Fletcher said, "It's inconceivable why anyone would want to protest at a military funeral while family members are there."
http://www.thewbalchannel.com/health/9144193/detail.html
Members of a Kansas Baptist church have protested at military funerals, claiming soldiers' deaths are a sign that God is punishing America for tolerating homosexuality.
The new law, signed by Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher in March, bans protests within 300 feet of memorial services, wakes and burials. Violators can be charged with first-degree disorderly conduct, punishable by up to a year in jail.
The ACLU said the Kentucky law goes too far in limiting speech and expression.
The ACLU argues that people could unknowingly violate it by stopping to chat on a public sidewalk near a funeral home. The civil liberties group said it could also prevent pro-military people from participating in counter-protests outside memorial services.
A spokesman for Fletcher said, "It's inconceivable why anyone would want to protest at a military funeral while family members are there."
http://www.thewbalchannel.com/health/9144193/detail.html
