Bill to move protesters advances (not thugs, Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan. ok ass hats)

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.omaha.com/article/20110224/NEWS01/702259935/0#bill-to-move-protesters-advances

By Paul Hammel
WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

LINCOLN — Pickets at funerals, notably those from the notorious Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., would have to move farther away from mourners under a bill headed for approval in the Nebraska Legislature.

Such protesters would have to be at least 500 feet from mourners, 200 feet more than under current state law.

Omaha Sen. Bob Krist, who introduced Legislative Bill 284, said colleagues had urged him to move protesters even farther back, perhaps 1,000 feet or to “another state.”

Westboro Baptist Church members regularly picket funerals of soldiers and other high-profile figures. In response, at least 40 states have enacted laws limiting when and where such groups can protest.

Krist said the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the 500-foot limit. Law enforcement officials say a 500-foot setback will better protect public safety by defusing clashes between pickets and mourners, he said.

FULL story at link.