The case will test the boundaries of the Constitution by weighing whether extreme speech that inflicts emotional pain — especially at sensitive venues such as memorials — should be protected by the First Amendment.
Members of Westboro Baptist Church, led by pastor and founder Fred Phelps in Topeka, Kan., have protested at military funerals to express their belief that America is being punished for tolerance of homosexuality.
Snyder’s father sued Phelps for invasion of privacy and for intentionally inflicting emotional distress. Snyder received $10.9 million in damages but a judge modified the jury’s amount to $5 million. The decision was reversed last September when the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals threw out the verdict on the basis of the First Amendment’s protection of free speech.
Phelps and his followers have frequently picketed gatherings of religious groups, including the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
