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Senate committee moves two bills aimed at protecting worship services; ACLU warns of First Amendment risks
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Summary
Senators advanced SB35 (Wheat) and SB306 (Edmonds) to criminalize willful disruptions at houses of worship; supporters cited recent disruptive incidents and urged preventive law, while the ACLU and defense attorneys warned the language could be overbroad unless narrowed. Both bills were reported favorably (SB35 with amendments).
Senators presented competing but related measures intended to prevent willful disruption of worship services, and the Judiciary C Committee voted both out for floor consideration.
Sponsor Senator Wheat told the committee Senate Bill 35 is intended to "ensure that the right to protest does not override the right to worship," and the committee adopted an amendment adding the words "intentionally and willfully" ahead of the term "disrupts" to narrow the conduct targeted.
Megan Garvey, representing the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys, testified the bill "could be conceived as overbroad" and may criminalize conduct protected by the First Amendment if its bounds are unclear. Sarah Whittington of the ACLU of Louisiana echoed the constitutional concerns, saying the language could capture people standing on a public sidewalk with a sign if intent were inferred. "Between here and the floor there would need to be some significant changes made to ensure the balance between a person's religious freedoms and our First Amendment rights," Whittington said.
Senator Edmonds presented Senate Bill 306 and described more specific language that enumerates obstructive acts — use of force, threats, physical obstruction and intimidation — and said his draft borrows features that have better odds of surviving constitutional review. Supporters including Gene Mills (Louisiana Family Forum) and Dr. Will Hall (Louisiana Baptist Convention) called SB306 the strongest of several proposals and urged passage; Mills said the Minnesota incident that inspired the bills "was an act of terrorism" that left children frightened.
Sponsors and civil‑liberties groups agreed to continue drafting, and the committee reported SB35 with amendments and SB306 favorably by unanimous consent. Committee members repeatedly said they intend to refine statutory language between committee and floor to avoid unconstitutional overreach.
