Lawmakers Vote to Keep Protestors Away from Funerals

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By CBS 8 News

Story Created: May 2, 2012 at 10:32 PM CDT

Story Updated: May 2, 2012 at 10:32 PM CDT

The Alabama Senate has given final approval to a bill that will prohibit protestors from getting within 1,000 feet of funerals for fallen soldiers or other victims.

The Senate voted 33-0 Wednesday for the bill by Republican Rep. DuWayne Bridges of Valley, a former U.S. Marine and a Vietnam veteran. It now goes to Gov. Robert Bentley for his review.

The bill calls for a violator to be sentenced to up to a year in jail for the first offense.

Bridges said he proposed the law because members of a Kansas church have protested at funerals for soldiers and for victims of highly publicized accidents and crimes.

House Speaker Mike Hubbard said the bill protects the free speech rights of protestors while allowing families of victims their privacy.

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

 

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