Laws that would ban protests one hour before or after a funeral and keep demonstrators at least 300 feet away are close to final passage at the State House.
The bills would effectively stop the kind of strident protests that occurred at last month?s funeral of a Marine killed in Iraq. The funeral of Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder was held at St. John?s Catholic Church in Westminster, Md.
When Suzan Drescher and a hundred members of the Patriot Guard Riders arrived on motorcycles to attend the service, as expected, they found members of Fred Phelps? Westboro Baptist Church demonstrating there. The protesters carried signs that read “God Hates the U.S.” and “Thank God for Dead Soldiers.”
The group says that the deaths of service members are God?s punishment for the gay culture in the United States. The Patriot Guard acts as a shield for the family and friends attending the funerals.
“I?ve seen this firsthand and how offensive it can be,” Drescher told a Senate committee in emotional testimony Tuesday.
The Westboro group has staged protests all across the country, including a demonstration Thursday at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington.
“The families of fallen soldiers deserve to mourn with dignity,” said Del. Mary-Dulany James, D-Harford, lead sponsor of the measure.
Del. Joan Cadden, D-Anne Arundel, chair of the veterans caucus and co-sponsor, said the legislation “affords all families who are experiencing the loss of a loved one the respect they deserve.”
The bill was opposed by the American Civil Liberties Union. In written testimony, the group said: “We find the activities of this church to be abhorrent beyond belief.”
The Westboro Web site is called www.godhatesfags.com and is filled with anti-Semitic, anti-Catholic and racist venom, the ACLU said. But Mindy Binderman, a lobbyist for the ACLU, said the organization found the measure too restrictive on First Amendment grounds.
The bill has passed the House of Delegates and is nearing final passage in the Senate. There is a companion Senate bill by Sen. Rob Garagiola, D-Montgomery.
Thirteen states are considering or have adopted similar laws.
