Daughter Of Fred Phelps, Westboro Baptist Church Founder, In Court Today
Posted on November 5, 2007
Recently we saw Albert Snyder, father of Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, take the Westboro Baptist Church, which is no more than a cult disguising itself as a church, to court for disrupting the funeral of his hero Marine son with protests.
Then we showed you that the father won his lawsuit and was awarded $11 million dollars in damages. You hear Phelps reaction to that news here and you can see all of Stop the ACLU’s post about this group here.
Today we see reports that the daughter of Fred Phelps, Shirley Phelps-Roper, is in court asking a Sarpy County judge Monday to order prosecutors to spell out in writing why she is charged with flag mutilation, negligent child abuse, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and disturbing the peace. They say the details of those charges will be important to Phelps-Roper’s defense.
HEH.
Security was tight today as Westboro Baptist Church member Shirley Phelps-Roper appeared in Sarpy County Court to answer charges that she mutilated a flag and put her child in danger while protesting at the funeral of a Bellevue, Neb., soldier.
Although the Sarpy County Sheriff’s Office prepared for a possible protest by members of Topeka-base Westboro Baptist Church, none materialized. A few family members and her attorney accompanied Phelps-Roper, 50.
According to Bellevue police, Phelps-Roper had her 10-year-old son stomp on an American flag. Church members had obtained a city of Bellevue permit to protest.
The church, founded by her father, Fred Phelps, has protested across the country at the funerals of numerous soldiers, alleging that their deaths were God’s retribution for America’s toleration of homosexuality.
Last Wednesday, a Maryland jury awarded nearly $11 million to a man who sued Westboro Baptist for invasion of privacy after its members protested at his son’s funeral.
The pretrial hearing centered on a defense motion requesting that the prosecution describe in detail the specific facts that support the charges, which include disturbing the peace, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and negligent child abuse.
Her attorney, Bassel El-Kasaby, argued that without specifics on what actions broke the law in each case and who was victimized he can’t prepare his case.
“I don’t think you can disturb the peace of a police officer or firefighter,” he said.
He said it was “unorthodox” and potential “overreaching” by prosecutors to charge Phelps-Roper with contributing to the delinquency of a minor and negligent child abuse.
“I’d like to know who the victim is and what harm they suffered,” he said.
He said if the flag mutilation charge is found unconstitutional, the other charges likewise may be dismissed, but he needs to know the relationship between the charges.
Deputy Sarpy County Attorney Marc Delman resisted El-Kasaby’s request, saying he didn’t want to limit the basis for the charges.
Delman told the judge that Phelps-Roper had “cleanly, openly and notoriously” made her son step on an American flag while her church protested at the funeral of William Bailey.
“Clearly the Bailey family was very upset by this,” he said. Delman said Phelps-Roper’s contempt for the flag gave rise to the case, but the rest of the charges stemmed from other actions as well, including slogans on signs and other conduct.
Phelps-Roper, outside the courtroom, said she didn’t force her son, Jason, to do anything.
She said he has grown up attending protests and acted on his own.
“He laid it on the ground, and he stood on it. And he stood there peacefully,” she said.
Sarpy County Attorney Lee Polikov says each charge stands alone, from desecrating the flag, to exposing children to this type of environment.
Polikov says, “I’m more and more convinced that these kids are put in peril all the time when they’re out being forced to do adult-type of activities so the charges are firm.”
Phelps-Roper’s attorney. Bassel El-Kasaby, seems to be constructing much of his case around a 1990 U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing flag burning as protected free speech.
Lee Polikov doesn’t buy it.
“Yes, speech is protected,” he says. “But not protected in every situation.”
When I showed pictures of the signs the children were forced to carry while this cult protested at military funerals, I asked if this was mental or emotional abuse.
I am glad I grabbed a couple of the pictures from the site because now, all the URL’s for that site are saying it is not a valid Domain.
Wonder whats up with that?
I truly hope that any family they harass takes action against them. These families have suffered enough and should be permitted to bury their loved ones in peace.
Via Wake up America.
Don’t think the child abuse charges should stick? Watch this heartbreaking video.
» Filed Under 1st Amendment, ACLU, Child Exploitation, Fallen Heros, News
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14 Responses to “Daughter Of Fred Phelps, Westboro Baptist Church Founder, In Court Today”
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While these are very strange people, the prosecutor is overreaching with these charges. They should be dismissed.
I find it interesting that the lefties want this whacko group to have the right to protest and make statements. They forget that these funerals are religious services and they have a right to be conducted by the families of the deceased under the constitution without being interrupted or harassed. Like it or not ACLU, Christians have the same rights as Muslims.
When these idiots were protesting Matthew Shepard and all the gay funerals no one cared. Now that we see how sick they really are by including dead American soldiers into the mix, people are concerned. This pig family should have be censored and silenced long ago.
Sorry, but you can’t just lump everyone together and say they didn’t care. I was against this scum when they protested Matthew’s funeral, and I’m definitely against them now. I never heard of them before that.
You know what also was a major problem, JFK Jr giving Phelps so much publicity in George Magazine. That Phelps was enboldened by that, especially when he ranked him #5 on his list of “The Most Interesting People in Politics” in the magazine.
Jay maybe you noticed them back then but on many of the Conservative websites they have or had no problem for what he did to Matthew Shepard.
Scripture does state that God hates the wicked. I am not so sure about that “pray for more dead kids”. Maybe they should have used “rejoice when God disciplines you.”.
am i the only one that sees the same violent denial as senator craig here? this phelps dude is one of many “closet-gay-in-denial” types that we see every day. maybe if we counter protested with that message, it would be more effective….
OK, how many of those kids have parents with the Westboro cult? Serve each and every one of those parents with subpoenas just like they did with Shirley Phelps-Roper and drag their asses into Court.
If they can’t make a compelling argument as to why their kids should not be removed from the Westboro compound then go in and take the kids away. By force, if need be.
Westboro delenda est.
While this is a great example of child abuse, it is just a drop in the bucket to the brainwashing and hate instilled in children by the anti-war movement now who are doing this exact same thing to 10,000’s of children.
Jeff, I think you need to rethink that remark, it’s out of line. People can be anti-war, they can dissent, it’s the American way. Comparing that to the a homophobic nutjob parading around as a Christian is probably what the nutjob would say and do.
Theodosa,
Actually the Anti-War crowd has a lot of nuts in it, ie Code Pink. People can also be anti-homosexual without being homophobic just like they can be anti-thief without being afraid of thieves.
Y’know what else is interesting? It’s been almost a week since the verdict in Baltimore, and the Topeka Capital Journal has yet to print ONE LETTER TO THE EDITOR ON THE SUBJECT.
Why do you suppose that is?
I know no one that would agree with what the WBC practices. They are just he opposite of a weeping prophet, but one day they will weep for the way in which they dishonored the name of Christ.
In addition, they have furthered the enemies cause. Like as Islamo-fascism is militant atheism’s polemical best friend, so many liberals are happy they have the Phelps to use as a caricature of Biblical believing Christians, but who are of different spirit than the Phelps.
You just will not believe the abuse that Fred(Crypt Keeper)Phelps carried out on his own children and wife.
http://www.blank.org/addict
This wingnut WANTS someone to open upon him and punch his lights out, because they
MAKE THEIR LIVING out of suing people all over the U.S.
Thank God for the Patriot Guard who blocks them with the noise of thunderous motorcycles!