Funeral protest bans.

• Position: STATELINE - Brief article

At least 24 states are moving to restrict protests at funerals--a response to the Rev. Fred Phelps and his followers from the Topeka Westboro Baptist Church who protest at the funerals of soldiers around the country. The bills ban picketing and protest marches within a specific distance of a funeral or memorial service. Wisconsin Senator Fred Risser, who supported a bill in that state, was nonetheless concerned about its constitutionality. "I think we probably have crossed over the line of First Amendment protections," he said. But a sponsor of the bill, Senator Ron Brown...