Illinois Lieutenant Gov. Pat Quinn and State Rep. Brandon Phelps, D-118th, proposed the 'Let Them Rest in Peace Act'–legislation to limit inflammatory protests within 300 feet of all Illinois funeral services–which was filed in the Illinois General Assembly last week.
The act is a response to a series of hate-group disruptions at funeral services for Illinois military personnel in the past year, according to a press release from Quinn's office. The anti-gay protests have been led primarily by Rev. Fred Phelps ( no relation to the state congressman ) and his congregation from Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kan. Rep. Phelps felt compelled to sponsor the measure after witnessing the conduct of a hate group at the funeral of Army Spc. Brian Romines in Anna, Illinois, one of the communities in his district.
The act applies to all funerals and memorial services in the state. The legislation creates a 300-foot zone of privacy between picketers and funeral sites. Disruptive and inflammatory protest would be banned a half-hour before a funeral, during a funeral, and a half-hour after the funeral within the 300-foot buffer zone.
Meanwhile, Indiana has already put the wheels in motion towards passing a similar measure. On Jan. 10, a state Senate committee endorsed a bill that would make disorderly conduct a felony offense if it occurs within 500 feet of a funeral or memorial service, according to an item on WCPO.com . The measure now goes to the full Senate.
The legislative development occurred the same day that a small contingent from Rev. Phelps' church protested the funeral of Jonathan Pfender, an Evansville soldier killed in Iraq. Republican state Senator Brent Steele says he filed the bill in response to a similar protest in August.