Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/10pdf/09-751.pdf
Page Number: 15.0

Cite as:  562 U. S. ____ (2011) 

11 

Opinion of the Court 

(Lexis Supp. 2010), as do 43 other States and the Federal 
Government.  See  Brief  for  American  Legion  as  Amicus 
Curiae  18–19,  n. 2  (listing  statutes).    To  the  extent  these 
laws  are  content  neutral,  they  raise  very  different  ques-
tions  from  the  tort  verdict  at  issue  in  this  case.    Mary-
land’s  law,  however,  was  not  in  effect  at  the  time  of  the 
events  at  issue  here,  so  we  have  no  occasion  to  consider 
how  it  might  apply  to  facts  such  as  those  before  us,  or 
whether it or other similar regulations are constitutional.5 
We  have  identified  a  few  limited  situations  where  the 
location  of  targeted  picketing  can  be  regulated  under 
provisions  that  the  Court  has  determined  to  be  content
neutral.  In Frisby, for example, we upheld a ban on such 
picketing  “before  or  about”  a  particular  residence,  487 
U. S.,  at  477.    In  Madsen  v.  Women’s  Health  Center,  Inc., 
we approved an injunction requiring a buffer zone between
protesters and an abortion clinic entrance.  512 U. S. 753, 
768  (1994).  The  facts  here  are  obviously  quite  different,
both  with  respect  to  the  activity  being  regulated  and  the
means of restricting those activities. 

Simply  put,  the  church  members  had  the  right  to  be
where they were.  Westboro alerted local authorities to its 
funeral protest and fully complied with police guidance on
where  the  picketing  could  be  staged.    The  picketing  was 
conducted  under  police  supervision  some  1,000  feet  from 
the  church,  out  of  the  sight  of  those  at  the  church.    The 
protest  was  not  unruly;  there  was  no  shouting,  profanity, 
or violence. 

The  record  confirms  that  any  distress  occasioned  by
Westboro’s picketing turned on the content and viewpoint
of  the  message  conveyed,  rather  than  any  interference
with  the  funeral  itself.    A  group  of  parishioners  standing
at the very spot where Westboro stood, holding signs that 
—————— 

5 The  Maryland  law  prohibits  picketing  within  100  feet  of  a  funeral 
service or funeral procession; Westboro’s picketing would have complied 
with that restriction.