Protests, picketing at funerals temporarily banned in Charleston

Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina.
(Image credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

On Tuesday, the Charleston City Council unanimously passed a temporary ordinance banning protests or picketing within 300 feet of a church or other building holding a funeral, memorial, or burial for one hour before and one hour after the event.

The move came just days before services will be held for the nine people who were shot and killed last week in the Emanuel AME Church. Charleston Mayor Joe Riley said police recommended the ordinance after being tipped off that a group might be planning to protest at one of the funerals, The Associated Press reports. Police Chief Gregory Mullen would not divulge the name of the group, and said their protest had nothing to do with the ongoing debate over the Confederate flag.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.