Church plans to picket Maine soldier’s funeral

NORWAY – A church that has placed pickets outside funerals of U.S. soldiers plans to be in Maine as Army Sgt. Corey Dan is laid to rest on Saturday.

A church representative told the Sun Journal newspaper of Lewiston that church members will be carrying signs proclaiming “Thank God for dead soldiers” and “God hates fags.” The church says soldiers are being struck down by God for defending a nation that tolerates homosexuality.

The antics of the Kansas-based Westboro Baptist Church have led to legislative efforts in Michigan, Minnesota, Colorado, Kentucky and other states to either stop the disruption of military funerals or to keep the protesters away from grieving families.

Dan, a member of the 101st Airborne Division from Norway, was killed in Iraq on March 13 when his Humvee was attacked with a roadside bomb and small arms fire. He died without ever seeing his son, who was born on the same day that he departed in December for his second tour of duty in Iraq.

Dan’s grandmother, Sharon Bouchard, said she respects people’s right to free speech but she said she hopes the protesters stay away from Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School in South Paris, where the funeral is being held. Dan graduated from the school in 2001.