Supreme Court sides with protesters at military funerals

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By Mike Munzenrider

The Supreme Court ruled 8-1 in favor of a church that conducts hateful protests at military funerals on Wednesday.

In an opinion written by Chief Justice John Roberts, the ruling affirmed the church's First Amendment right to free speech, reports the The New York Times.

The church in question, the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., picketed the funeral of a Marine killed in Iraq in 2006. They carried signs with slogans like "God Hates You," "You Are Going To Hell," and "Thank God for Dead Soldiers." Following the funeral, the Marine's father sued, reports Reuters.

The case pitted free-speech versus privacy rights, and ultimately, the court sided with freedom of speech, according to Reuters.

The single dissent came from Justice Samuel Alito, reports The New York Times.

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This page contains a single entry by munz0007 published on March 2, 2011 2:24 PM.

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