COHOCTON, NY (AP) -- The New York Legislature has voted to put limits on protesters at military funerals.
Sponsors say the measures balance demonstrators' rights to free speech with families' ability to mourn without additional distress.
Members of Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan., have protested at many military funerals across the country, saying U.S. troop deaths are punishment for the nation's tolerance of homosexuality.
One bill triples the buffer zone for protests around a religious service, funeral, burials or memorial services from 100 to 300 feet.
Another authorizes a permit process for demonstrations at veteran funerals and fines for failure to comply.
Sen. Joseph Griffo, a Republican from Oneida County, says grieving military families shouldn't be the target of political demonstrations.
In related news, Patriot Guard motorcyclists plan to form a buffer line against protesters at the funeral of an Alaska-based soldier killed in Afghanistan.
Army Sgt. Devin Snyder, who will be buried Saturday in her hometown of Cohocton in western New York, was one of four soldiers killed June 4 when insurgents attacked their unit with an improvised explosive device.
Her coffin was escorted home Monday by a procession that included 150 Patriot Guard motorcyclists. New York state police Capt. Dave Kern says the escort group was invited by Snyder's family to be a shield against any Westboro Baptist Church protesters at the funeral.
(Copyright ©2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
