Koster files response to ACLU request for attorney fees in Westboro Baptist Church case

Attorney General Chris Koster filed a motion in U. S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri today opposing the ACLU's request for attorney fees for its representation of the Westboro Baptist Church.

ACLU wants taxpayers to foot the bill for Westboro Baptist Church's legal fees

The American Civil Liberties Union filed the motion Aug. 24, asking for the taxpayers to pay $172,046.25, plus $3,335.40 in expenses.

The request was made possible when Judge Fernando Gaitan ruled in favor of the church Aug. 16, striking down Missouri laws which restricted the times protests could be held at funerals and required protesters to maintain a distance of at least 300 feet from the funerals.

The Westboro church has made a practice of protesting at military funerals, claiming that the deaths of American servicemen is God's method of punishing the country for its tolerance of homosexuals.

In his motion today, Koster asked the court to either deny the ACLU request, trim the amount considerably, or delay its decision until all aspects of the case have been settled.