Wisconsin Legislature: 2005 Wisconsin Act 114

Date of enactment: February 20, 2006
2005 Senate Bill 525 Date of publication*: March 6, 2006

* Section 991.11, Wisconsin Statutes 2003-04 : Effective date of acts. "Every act and every portion of an act enacted by the legislature over the governor's partial veto which does not expressly prescribe the time when it takes effect shall take effect on the day after its date of publication as designated" by the secretary of state [the date of publication may not be more than 10 working days after the date of enactment].

Republication*: February 28, 2006

2005 WISCONSIN ACT 114

An Act to create 947.011 of the statutes; relating to: disrupting a funeral or memorial service or a funeral procession and providing penalties.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

114,1 Section 1. 947.011 of the statutes is created to read:

947.011 Disrupting a funeral or memorial service. (1) In this section:

(a) "Facility" includes a cemetery in which a funeral or memorial service takes place.

(b) "Funeral or memorial service" includes a wake or a burial, as defined in s. 157.061 (1), but does not include a service that is not intended to honor or commemorate one or more specific decedents.

(2) (a) No person may do any of the following during a funeral or memorial service, during the 60 minutes immediately preceding the scheduled starting time of a funeral or memorial service if a starting time has been scheduled, or during the 60 minutes immediately following a funeral or memorial service:

1. Engage in conduct that is prohibited under s. 947.01 within 500 feet of any entrance to a facility being used for the service with the intent to disrupt the service.

2. Intentionally block access to a facility being used for the service.

(b) No person, with the intent to disrupt a funeral procession, may impede vehicles that he or she knows are part of the procession.

(c) No person may do any of the following during a funeral or memorial service, during the 60 minutes immediately preceding the scheduled starting time of a funeral or memorial service if a starting time has been scheduled, or during the 60 minutes immediately following a funeral or memorial service:

1. Engage in conduct that is prohibited under s. 947.01 within 500 feet of any entrance to a facility being used for the service.

2. Block access to a facility being used for the service.

(d) No person may impede vehicles that are part of a funeral procession if the person's conduct violates s. 947.01.

(3) (a) Except as provided in par. (b), any person who violates this section is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.

(b) Any person who violates sub. (2) (a) or (b) after having been convicted of a violation of this section is guilty of a Class I felony.