Bill halting funeral protests hits a snag

A bill to bar demonstrations 200 feet from cemeteries and funeral homes has hit a snag with the American Civil Liberties Union and a labor union representing gravediggers.

But its Senate sponsors believe a deal to stop a fundamentalist Kansas church from picketing soldiers' funerals in Illinois can still be struck before the Legislature's expected adjournment in the next two weeks.

"I'm hopeful that by the end of the week, we can have something worked out. If we can't, that would be unfortunate," said Sen. Arthur J. Wilhelmi, D-Crest Hill. "It's my goal to make sure all parties can walk away with a win-win."

Illinois is among at least 14 states that have attempted to crack down on protests at military funerals by Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., which believes soldiers killed in action died for a country that supports homosexuality.

The legislation has stalled in the Senate amid First Amendment concerns by the ACLU and worries by the Service Employees International Union that picketing by cemetery employees in potential labor disputes could be hindered.

Senate Republicans called on the chamber's Democratic leadership to set aside those issues and allow an immediate floor vote after the initiative won nearly unanimous backing in the House this month.

"We want to see this bill moved out of the Senate Rules Committee," said Sen. Dale Righter, R-Mattoon. "This is quite simply a very easy, very decent thing we can do for families who have given up so much for the sake of their country overseas."

Sen. Chris Lauzen, R-Aurora, is a chief co-sponsor of House Bill 4532, which is backed by Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn, a Democrat. The bill would establish the "Let Them Rest in Peace Act" to prohibit loud and inflammatory protests within 200 feet of all Illinois funeral services beginning 30 minutes before a funeral, during a funeral, and 30 minutes after the funeral.

"We shouldn't be playing politics with such an important issue," Lauzen said. "This bill should be released to the full Senate for individual members to decide on a 'yes' or 'no.'"

Senate President Emil Jones, D-Chicago, supports the legislation, and his spokeswoman, Cindy Davidsmeyer, downplayed GOP concerns that the issue would stay bottled up beyond the Legislature's expected adjournment.

"Just as appropriate limits are set on free speech to prevent someone from yelling 'fire' in a movie theater, there needs to be safeguards in place to prevent the desecration of a soldier's funeral just to advance a political agenda," said Lauzen.

Lauzen was convinced to sponsor the measure after learning that protestors threatened to picket the funeral of Marine Lance Cpl. Adam Wade Kaiser, 19, of Naperville, who was killed in Iraq last year.