A big hat tip to FireDogLake for the 411 on this story. It's not all over the MSM, which frankly doesn't surprise me one iota. As FDL notes, this bankrupts the homophobic bastard known as Fred Phelps and his church of homophobic phreaks at Westboro Baptist. Its judgment day for Freddy and his clan. U.S. District Judge Richard Bennett noted the size of the award for compensating damages "far exceeds the net worth of the defendants," according to financial statements filed with the court. (emphasis mine) From an AP article on the award:
Members of a fundamentalist Kansas church ordered to pay nearly $11 million in damages to a grieving father smiled as they walked out of the courtroom, vowing that the verdict would not deter them from protesting at military funerals.
"Absolutely, don't you understand this was an act in futility?" said Shirley Phelps-Roper, whose father founded the Westboro Baptist Church.
Members promised to picket future funerals with placards bearing such slogans as "Thank God for dead soldiers" and "God hates fags." They believe that U.S. deaths in the Iraq war are punishment for the nation's tolerance of homosexuality.
They say they are entitled to protest at funerals under the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech and religion.
Albert Snyder sued the Topeka, Kan., church after a protest last year at the funeral of his son, Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, who was killed in Iraq. He claimed the protests intruded upon what should have been a private ceremony and sullied his memory of the event. A jury agreed.
On Wednesday, the church and three of its leaders — Fred Phelps and his two daughters, Phelps-Roper and Rebekah Phelps-Davis — were found liable for invasion of privacy and intent to inflict emotional distress.
The jury first awarded $2.9 million in compensatory damages. It returned later in the afternoon with its decision to award $6 million in punitive damages for invasion of privacy and $2 million for causing emotional distress.
Pay up you sumbitch.
Edit..here is their version of God hates the world..watch it and weep for the lives being fucked up by Phelps and his nutjobs
God Hates the World - Watch more free videos
Tags: Fred Phelps, Westboro Baptist
ThinkFast: July 10, 2009
17 minutes ago