Rep. Boccieri Responds to ACLU Challenge of Funeral Protest Ban

For immediate release: Monday, August 28, 2006

Contact: Rep Boccieri at (330) 518-5366 or Katie Jones at (614) 466-1464

Rep. Boccieri Responds to ACLU Challenge of Funeral Protest Ban

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Legislation sponsored by state Representative John Boccieri (D-New Middletown) to protect grieving families from the disruption of a protest during the funeral is now under attack by the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio. The ACLU filed suit in federal court last week challenging House Bill 484, the “Let Them Rest in Peace Act,” on the grounds that it unconstitutionally limits free speech.

The legislation creates a 300 foot buffer between protestors and grieving families at funerals. Governor Taft signed the bill in May and the law is scheduled to go into effect on September 4^th. Rep. Boccieri introduced the bill in response to Westboro Baptist Church (WBC), a hate group that protests the funerals of AIDS victims and Iraq War veterans.

“Although I've agreed with the ACLU on Constitutional matters in the past, I feel they have it all wrong with this law,” Rep. Boccieri said. “The real question is where do the rights to free speech end and where does a grieving family's right to privacy begin?  I think it begins 300 feet away from a grieving family.”

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that limitations on speech must restrict only the time, place, and manner of speech and not the content of the message itself. Legislation must be narrowly tailored, content neutral,  leave open alternative channels of communication, and serve a legitimate and significant government interest, which can include protecting the public from confrontational and harassing conduct (Hill v. Colorado, 530 U.S. 703). The Court has upheld similar buffers for protestors at abortion clinics.  

The ACLU is defending Pastor Fred Phelps of the WBC and his far-right family who've led nearly a dozen protests at military funerals in Ohio. The group claims God is punishing America for being soft on homosexuality, and for this reason our troops are returning in body bags. At past protests, confrontations have arisen because of families being shoved and spit on while attending funerals. 

“This legislation does nothing to change the content of their speech,” Rep. Boccieri said. “The WBC and other protest groups can still spew their venom and hatred, but at a respectful distance from the grieving family. HB 484 is all about privacy and respect,” he added.

The ACLU contends that the legislation would prohibit protests taking place in the vicinity of funerals and funeral processions, even if the protests were not aimed at the funeral. Rep. Boccieri says the language in HB 484 makes it clear that these restrictions apply only to protest activities aimed specifically at disrupting funerals.

“My colleagues and I worked hard to craft a law that upholds free speech rights to the greatest extent possible,” Rep. Boccieri said. “The ACLU is off base on this issue - I think HB 484 strikes the proper balance between free speech and the right to privacy.”