Matthew Plum, The Examiner
2006-09-30 09:00:00.0
Current rank: Not ranked

Abingdon -

Members of a Kansas church who believe God is punishing this country for its tolerance of homosexuality will picket the funeral Saturday of Petty Officer 2nd Class David Roddy.

“The reason that the fruits of this nation are being killed ... is because God is cursing this nation,” said Rebecca Phelps-Davis, a spokeswoman for the Westboro Baptist Church.

She said about 10 members of the Westboro Baptist Church will be present at Roddy’s funeral, and they plan to arrive at Saint Francis de Sales Catholic Church in Abingdon around 9:15 a.m. Roddy’s funeral is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m.

Phelps-Davis said Westboro protesters attend the funerals that they can, given that parishioners have their own lives. They do not attend military funerals to cause violence, but to spread their beliefs, she said.

“He died for their right to protest,” said Robert Roddy, Roddy’s father. “But for them to protest at a funeral ... if I had my way with them, all of them would be arrested and then they would be on a plane the next day to Iraq.”

Robert Roddy took some comfort from the fact that state law requires the Westboro picketers to protest his son’s funeral at a distance of 300 feet away, and also that a contingent of Patriot Guard Riders — a group that stands between protesters and funeral mourners — will be on hand.

“It’s unfortunate that in this day and age, people feel the need to protest the funeral of a hero,” said Bob Thomas, a spokesman for the Harford County Sheriff’s Office.

He said sheriff’s deputies and Maryland state troopers will be on hand to direct traffic and prevent violence sparked by the presence of the Westboro picketers.

Roddy, 32, of Abingdon, was a graduate of Bel Air High School and Harford Community College.

He had been offered a temporary leave from Iraq to recuperate after seeing his partner blown up by a homemade bomb in late August, but turned down the offer.

Three weeks later, on Sept. 16, Roddy was killed when a roadside bomb exploded.

Capital News Service contributed to this report.

mplum@baltimoreexaminer.com