Westboro Baptist Lunatics Lose $11 Million Dollar Lawsuit
Jury Awards Grieving Father Nearly $11 Million in Verdict Against Military Funeral Protesters
A grieving father won a nearly $11 million verdict Wednesday against a fundamentalist Kansas church that pickets military funerals out of a belief that the war in Iraq is a punishment for the nation's tolerance of homosexuality.
Albert Snyder of York, Pa., sued the Westboro Baptist Church for unspecified damages after members demonstrated at the March 2006 funeral of his son, Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, who was killed in Iraq.
Lance Cpl. Matthew A. Snyder
The Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder Story
The jury first awarded $2.9 million in compensatory damages. It returned in the afternoon with its decision to award $6 million in punitive damages for invasion of privacy and $2 million for causing emotional distress.
Westboro Baptist Lunatics
Snyder's attorney, Craig Trebilcock, had urged jurors to determine an amount "that says don't do this in Maryland again. Do not bring your circus of hate to Maryland again."
Church members routinely picket funerals of military personnel killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, carrying signs such as "Thank God for dead soldiers" and "God hates fags."
A number of states have passed laws regarding funeral protests, and Congress has passed a law prohibiting such protests at federal cemeteries. But the Maryland lawsuit is believed to be the first filed by the family of a fallen serviceman.
The church and three of its leaders _ the Rev. Fred Phelps and his two daughters, Shirley Phelps-Roper and Rebecca Phelps-Davis, 46 _ were found liable for invasion of privacy and intent to inflict emotional distress.YEAH!!!!
Fred Phelps The Leader Of The Westboro Baptist Freaks With Of All People 'Al Gore'! And Al Gore Just Won The Nobel Peace Prize. Hmmm
Even the size of the award for compensating damages "far exceeds the net worth of the defendants," according to financial statements filed with the court, U.S. District Judge Richard Bennett noted.
Snyder claimed the protests intruded upon what should have been a private ceremony and sullied his memory of the event.
The church members testified they are following their religious beliefs by spreading the message that soldiers are dying because the nation is too tolerant of homosexuality.
Their attorneys maintained in closing arguments Tuesday that the burial was a public event and that even abhorrent points of view are protected by the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech and religion.
Earlier, church members staged a demonstration outside the federal courthouse. Church founder Fred Phelps held a sign reading "God is your enemy," while Shirley Phelps-Roper stood on an American flag and carried a sign that read "God hates fag enablers." Members of the group sang "God Hates America" to the tune of "God Bless America."
Snyder sobbed when he heard the verdict, while members of the church greeted the news with tightlipped smiles.
Here's A Video I Snatched From....Conservative Intelligence Report...Showing What Happens When These Loones Are Caught And Families Have Had Enough :-) God Bless This Family And All The Pro-Victory Folks That Obviously Couldnt Take It Anymore.
http://view.break.com/189664 - Watch more free videos
Story Here
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This isnt anywhere near the justice they deserve, but it is justice none the less. Maybe if enough folks bankrupt these people they will get the hint that they are seriously disturbed and need psychological help from the obvious brainwashing Fred Phelps has done to his children over the years. Still, that is NO excuse for what these people have been doing and have been able to get away with all this time. Maybe we wont be seeing these idiot's at Funerals for our Brave Fallen Soldiers anymore. And this will probably open up the door for thousands of lawsuits. But Hey, you reap what you sew and these loones got what they deserved. Watch the Video, it's priceless and if you cant stand this group as much as I cant, it will make your day :-)
Also Blogging:
Conservative Intelligence Report
A grieving father won a nearly $11 million verdict Wednesday against a fundamentalist Kansas church that pickets military funerals out of a belief that the war in Iraq is a punishment for the nation's tolerance of homosexuality.
Albert Snyder of York, Pa., sued the Westboro Baptist Church for unspecified damages after members demonstrated at the March 2006 funeral of his son, Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, who was killed in Iraq.
The Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder Story
The jury first awarded $2.9 million in compensatory damages. It returned in the afternoon with its decision to award $6 million in punitive damages for invasion of privacy and $2 million for causing emotional distress.
Snyder's attorney, Craig Trebilcock, had urged jurors to determine an amount "that says don't do this in Maryland again. Do not bring your circus of hate to Maryland again."
Church members routinely picket funerals of military personnel killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, carrying signs such as "Thank God for dead soldiers" and "God hates fags."
A number of states have passed laws regarding funeral protests, and Congress has passed a law prohibiting such protests at federal cemeteries. But the Maryland lawsuit is believed to be the first filed by the family of a fallen serviceman.
The church and three of its leaders _ the Rev. Fred Phelps and his two daughters, Shirley Phelps-Roper and Rebecca Phelps-Davis, 46 _ were found liable for invasion of privacy and intent to inflict emotional distress.YEAH!!!!
Even the size of the award for compensating damages "far exceeds the net worth of the defendants," according to financial statements filed with the court, U.S. District Judge Richard Bennett noted.
Snyder claimed the protests intruded upon what should have been a private ceremony and sullied his memory of the event.
The church members testified they are following their religious beliefs by spreading the message that soldiers are dying because the nation is too tolerant of homosexuality.
Their attorneys maintained in closing arguments Tuesday that the burial was a public event and that even abhorrent points of view are protected by the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech and religion.
Earlier, church members staged a demonstration outside the federal courthouse. Church founder Fred Phelps held a sign reading "God is your enemy," while Shirley Phelps-Roper stood on an American flag and carried a sign that read "God hates fag enablers." Members of the group sang "God Hates America" to the tune of "God Bless America."
Snyder sobbed when he heard the verdict, while members of the church greeted the news with tightlipped smiles.
http://view.break.com/189664 - Watch more free videos
Story Here
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This isnt anywhere near the justice they deserve, but it is justice none the less. Maybe if enough folks bankrupt these people they will get the hint that they are seriously disturbed and need psychological help from the obvious brainwashing Fred Phelps has done to his children over the years. Still, that is NO excuse for what these people have been doing and have been able to get away with all this time. Maybe we wont be seeing these idiot's at Funerals for our Brave Fallen Soldiers anymore. And this will probably open up the door for thousands of lawsuits. But Hey, you reap what you sew and these loones got what they deserved. Watch the Video, it's priceless and if you cant stand this group as much as I cant, it will make your day :-)
Also Blogging:
Conservative Intelligence Report
Labels: Justice, Lawsuit, Westboro Baptist Lunatics
posted by Marie's Two Cents | 12:01 AM
19 Comments:
Fred Phelps is a democrat and this is a phony church. These people need to be shot and have their bodies dragged through the streets and then hung upside down out in the desert for the buzzards. That funeral was about 45 minutes from here but I didn't know it was going on and it's probably a good thing because I probably would have done the aforementioned process. I'm just fed up with all the stupid crap that has been going on including these Westboro lunatics.
well, we do have freedom of speech! But thankfully the jury awarded punitive damages and that freedom to hurt didnt come cheap! May the punitive damages be enough to shut these people up! God does not hate! Those people are not Christian or Godly. Everyone should learn from this and take notice that..If u have nothing nice to say.....dont say it. Judgement is for God.... not for us as humans... WE ARE NOT GOD! Treat all people well and do not judge others!
Jenn,
Sounds good to me.
I sure love the video. To bad they didnt get thier asses kicked, I would have loved that.
ksandy920,
Yep, this was a good verdict.
One way or another they will be taught a lesson.
It's about time that these loonies got some come - up - ance.
Personally when the 21 gun salute is made at a military funeral, were I in charge of the detail, I believe that the aiming point would not be up but ....you get the picture!
Amen to what
The Liberal Lie The Conservative Truth said.
Ken,
Ha! I get the picture alright lol
I'm so glad these people got smashed, $11 million is NOT chicken feed! These are the most vile people I've ever seen.
DD,
Yep Yep
Jenn,
Fred Phelps is no more a Democrat than Timothy McVeigh was a Republican.
"McVeigh was born in Lockport, New York, and raised in nearby Pendleton, New York. He was the middle child of three and the only male child. He earned his high school diploma from Starpoint Central High School. His parents, Mildred Noreen ("Mickey") Hill and William McVeigh,[1] divorced when he was 10. His parents were of Irish and German origin. McVeigh was known throughout his life as a loner; his only known affiliations were voter registration with the Republican Party when he lived in New York and a membership in the National Rifle Association while in the military."
Both Phelps and McVeigh are abominations and no one from either party is resposible for their hideous actions.
I do not hold Republicans responsible for McVeigh just because he was a registered Republican. And no Democrat approves of Phelps' insane actions.
The best way to quash him and his odious followers is to bankrupt them, and I hope this law suit will do that.
Sadly, we will always have lunatics who abuse our freedom of speech.
Hi Marie,
I too agree with the Liberal Lie Conservative Truth, and as soon as Joanne realizes that Jenn is saying the Truth then she Joanne will be seeing the light.
Sorry Joanne but it is well documented that the Fred Phelps are Democrats I have seen that a long time ago and it's fact what Jenn said.
If I were you Joanne I wouldn't argue with Jenn, she is quite often right on the money most of the time and she has said many things that did turn out to be very factual.
Just the facts Joanne Just the facts.
There is a God and he doesn't like lunatics to use his name in vain!
It's about time!!! And I agree with Ken's statement completely!!
Sorry Joanne but it is well documented that the Fred Phelps are Democrats I have seen that a long time ago and it's fact what Jenn said.
If I were you Joanne I wouldn't argue with Jenn, she is quite often right on the money most of the time and she has said many things that did turn out to be very factual.
Just the facts Joanne Just the facts.--wild phil
I guess I didn't make it clear. I'm not disputing what is reported, i.e., Phelps has said he's a Democrat.
I'm saying that he doesn't represent anything the Democratic party stands for--just as I'm sure Timothy McVeigh didn't represent anything the Republican party stands for.
Both Phelps and McVeigh are/were aberrations AND abominations.
I've argued with Jennifer many a time here, and she's roughed me up but good. I like her. She's a worthy opponent--knows a lot. And has great taste in poetry.
On this issue (that both men I mention are scum and don't belong in either party), I think she'll agree.
Joanne, Timothy McVeigh was one of those libertarian/militia movement, conspiracy people. Those people are now the followers of space alien ron paul. Phelps' daughters are trial lawyers and are also democrats. They are not Christian either. It's hard to tell what is going on with that Westboro crowd. They have some kind of scam they are trying to perpetrate but no one seems to have answered that yet. No, they don't come out and say they represent the democrats there something else to it. They are however registered democrats.
I agree with both Joanne and j_g.
I'm just glad we can all have a decent discussion.
I was never so happy to see a verdict!!
I agree with Joanne. I don't claim David Duke in my party, either.
Fred Phelps is no more representative of the Democratic party than he is representative of Christians! He's a wacko, plain and simple. I'm so glad someone fianally decided to challenge him.
I was on another post recently regarding this subject where the administrator who despises Phelps and crew, nevertheless stated that he has the right to do what he's doing because of "Freedom of Speech" and that he shouldn't have been sued. I strongly disagree with that sentiment. He has abused Freedom of Speech and is causing emotional damage to people who are attempting to bury their dead in a dignified and respectful manner. That they claim to be Christians is a joke! Actually, that they pretend to be human beings is a joke.
I was working on a post about this, but I got sidetracked onto the little girl in India who's getting two sets of extra arms and legs removed, so I thought I'd just share a little.
1. Fred Phelps and the Democrats do share a number of positions in common, among them: the belief that the United States is a Bad Country; support for the defeat of the United States by its enemies; contempt for American servicemen and -women.
2. A money judgment won't mean anything to the Westboro Baptists, because a money judgment is different from throwing them in jail (Think O.J. Simpson), which is what it would take to get them to stop.
3. The Westboro Baptists can go on doing what they do in the face of more lawsuits, because their legal expenses are being paid by the ACLU or the taxpayers, in criminal cases, and by some darker combination of resources in the civil cases.
4. The question that really deserves an answer is, "What will happen once Fred himself shuffles off to the Great Beyond?" Will his followers melt away into the American savannah, or will they drink the Kool-Aid and set fire to the compound? Damfino.
I thought that Picture of Al Gore pictured with Fred Phelps was pretty self explanatory!
Post a Comment
<< Home