The case is Nixon v. Phelps-Roeper, and the Phelps are of the Westboro Baptist Church based in Kansas. Missouri state legislators created a law that restricted protests outside of funerals after Westboro Bapist Church members picketed outside of a soldier's funeral in Saint Joseph, Missouri. Shirley Phelps-Roeper is the granddaughter of the church founder. She sued, saying the ban violated her first
The Thomas Jefferson Freedom of Speech Institute filed a brief on Phelps' behalf. Attorney Robert O'Neil said that he personally finds Westboro Baptist and their message distasteful, but he thinks censoring them would send a harsh message regarding freedom of speech.
"Well, if you suppress their message, then government can also suppress other messages which they disfavor."
Republican State Representative Rob Schaaf co-sponsored the law, and he says he's disappointed with the court's ruling.
"There's a tension here between a person's right to protest, and another person's right to privacy during a very, intensely emotional time in their lives. So, it seems to me that there has to be a balance and I thought our law provided that balance."
MU Law Professor and Free Speech Expert Christina Wells thinks Phelps and Westboro Baptist have a legitimate case based on the restrictions the law gives.
"There are lots of problems with the Missouri statute, so I think the Phelps unquestionably have, in my mind, a viable free speech claim."
For Schaaf, the ban on protests at funerals comes down to a matter of respect.
"It's just ridiculous that a soldier that gave his or her life for our country can't be treated with respect."
Wells says the Supreme Court has not heard a case of this nature before, and it is possible for the justices to decide to hear it after the district and appeals court have made a decision about the legality of the case at the trial level.
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