A southern Illinois lawmaker is working to limit protesters at funerals in the state.The Illinois House has passed a bill that would restrict when and where protestors - like the Kansas based Westboro Baptist church that rallies at military funerals - can stage their protests. State Representative Jerry Costello II is the bill's sponsor. The Belleville democrat says it expands current boundaries preventing protestors from one hour before and one hour after a service, instead of the current 30 minutes. Costello says it would also restrict protests from occurring less than 1,000 feet from a funeral.
The bill would make a violation of the proposed restriction a class-c misdemeanor. The bill is now before the State Senate. Costello is a former Army paratrooper. He serves on the House Armed Forces and Military Affairs committee. The legislation is HB3802.
House Passes Funeral Restriction Bill
