April 2, 2010

Las Vegas, NV—Nevada Senator Harry Reid released the following statement today in support of the family of Marine Lance Corporal Matthew Snyder, a Marine who lost his life in Iraq in 2006.  Matthew’s funeral was protested by extremists, and his family is engaged in civil court proceedings to stop these protests at other military funerals:

“When Matthew Snyder lost his life on the battlefield in 2006, his family was grief-stricken to lose their son and brother who served America with such honor.  That pain was compounded when extremists protested Matthew’s funeral with ugly and hurtful signs.  When Matthew’s family took this case to court they won a civil suit to help deter future injustices like this, but that verdict was overturned at the appellate level. 

“I am deeply disappointed that the appellate court ruled against the Snyder family.  I was further dismayed to learn that the appellate court ordered the Snyder family to pay the legal costs for the extremists who tried to tarnish the memory of their beloved Matthew. 

“Our men and women in uniform in Nevada and across America are always there for us and we need to be there for them.  I urge the Supreme Court to rule in favor of the Snyder family.  In addition, I will review our current laws on this subject to ensure enough is being done to prevent other families from having to endure what the Snyder family went through.  We can respect each other’s freedoms while honoring the memory of our service members.” 

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