A few days ago I wrote about a dead Marine’s father who had taken the Westboro Baptist Church gang led by Fred Phelps to court for disrupting his son’s funeral.

It is my pleasure to report the verdict is in and it is not in favor of the Phelps cult. (I refuse to call them Baptists)

A Baltimore federal jury awarded nearly $11 million Wednesday to the father of a Marine killed in Iraq, deciding that the family’s privacy had been invaded by a Kansas church whose members waved anti-gay signs at the funeral.

It was the first-ever verdict against Westboro Baptist Church, a fundamentalist Christian group based in Topeka that has protested military funerals across the country with placards bearing shock-value messages such as “Thank God for dead soldiers.”

They contend that the deaths are punishment for America’s tolerance of homosexuality and of gays in the military.

Relatives of Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder wept and hugged at the jury’s announcement, which came a day after closing arguments in the civil trial in federal district court.

“Now I know it’s going to be harder for them to do it to anyone else,” said Albert Snyder, who mourned at his son’s funeral in March 2006 while seven Westboro members waved signs nearby.

The compensatory damage award alone, $2.9 million, was nearly triple the net worth of Westboro and the three members on trial, their attorney said.

Fred W. Phelps Sr., Westboro’s founder, vowed to appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, in Richmond, Va.

“It’s going to be reversed in five minutes,” he said. This case, he added, “will elevate me to something important,” as it draws more publicity to his cause.

You hope, and the sad part is that all the namby pamby legal experts are saying this is going to set back freedom of speech. Baloney!

No one has the freedom to inflict more pain on a family already grieving the death of a son, brother, uncle etc.

If this verdict holds up and then holds up in the Supreme Court or the Supreme Court refuses to hear it then Phelps and family are out of business as well as out of money, and we won’t have to see his daughter’s rage-filled face on television anymore spewing her hatred against anyone not a member of her group.

The jury found the family’s privacy had been invaded. If we can twist the constitution to say abortion is an issue of privacy then certainly this is a more compelling case for violation of privacy, since it’s straight forward.

Justice is being served.

HT: Captain’s Quarters