The U.S. Supreme Court this morning heard oral arguments in Snyder v. Phelps. In the case, the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with the Westboro Baptist Church and its leaders that a $5 million judgment against them growing out of their picketing of the funeral of Iraq veteran Matthew Snyder and a related Internet posting violated their free speech rights. (See prior posting.) The full transcript of today's oral arguments is available from the Supreme Court's website. Scotus blog has extensive links to briefs in the case and material relating to the oral arguments. The New York Times describes today's arguments as "featur[ing] disputes about the facts and a parade of hypothetical alternative scenarios." Interestingly, oral arguments for Westboro Baptist Church were made by Margie J. Phelps, a daughter of Westboro's pastor, Fred W. Phelps, Jr. Before the arguments, another of Phelps daughters picketed outside the Supreme Court carrying a sign reading "America Is Doomed."
UPDATE: An audio recording of the full oral arguments is now also available from the Supreme Court's website.
