Funeral protest: contemptible, and constitutional

Yesterday the Supreme Court heard a case brought by Albert Snyder, the father of a young Marine killed in Iraq in 2006, whose funeral was picketed in a despicable display of insensitivity by members of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan.

Members of this church say they believe that God has ordered the deaths of American soldiers as punishment for the country's tolerance of homosexuals. Seven members showed up for Matthew Snyder's funeral in Maryland, wielding signs that read "God Hates Fags" and "Thank God for Dead Soldiers." Westboro later posted an "epic poem" on its website titled "The Burden of Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder" that accused the Snyders of raising Matthew "for the devil."

Snyder, who claimed his depression and diabetes were exacerbated by the church's acts, sued Westboro's leader and several members for intentional infliction of emotional distress and invasion of privacy. The church countered that protests were protected by the First Amendment. A jury awarded Snyder nearly $11 million in compensatory and punitive damages, but a federal appeals court overturned the verdict.

The District of Columbia, Maryland and 47 other states filed a brief siding with Snyder's appeal to the Supreme Court. Snyder deserves the justices' sympathy, but he should not get their votes.

The protesters abided by police restrictions and stayed 1,000 feet away from the funeral. A police officer described the protest as peaceful. Court records also indicate that Snyder first "saw" the protesters on television, hours after his son's funeral. And he didn't read the offensive "epic" until weeks later, when he was searching the internet for media reports on his son.

Private lawsuits should not be vehicles to quash unpopular ideas or sentiments. If Westboro's vitriol is deemed unworthy of First Amendment protection and a private citizen can sue to silence the church - or shut it down - then everyone's rights will be eroded and made dependent on the sensibilities of others.