Overland Park Catholic Church Pro-Choice Vandalism: Free Speech Or Hate Crime???

Actually, it's neither.

Disappointing as that might be to activists on both sides of the aisle . . . Here's why . . .

Now refurbished to the best of its ability, the Johnson County District Attorney and Overland Park Police Department are working to find some answers explaining why this not a freedom of speech, but a crime.

“The first amendment of the Constitution does not protect criminal behavior,” Steve Howe, the Johnson County District Attorney, said.

However, the stains in red left at the Church of the Ascension are not considered a hate crime, according to Howe. “Well under the laws of the State of Kansas, there is not quote hate crime," Howe said. “It can be an enhancement factor to increase the penalties, if it is motivated based on hate of a certain group. So it could be eligible for that type of enhanced sentence.”

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com links . . .

Officials explain how vandalism at Church of The Ascension can be prosecuted

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. - On Sunday, Church of The Ascension in Overland Park, Kansas, was vandalized with red paint. The alleged suspect painting explicits words, the phrase "My Body My Choice," along with the defacing a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

'Jesus never promised us easy' - The Leaven Catholic Newspaper

by Moira Cullings moira.cullings@theleaven.org OVERLAND PARK - When Sharon Weems arrived at Church of the Ascension here on the morning of July 10, she was stunned. "I was just sickened," she said. "It's dirty and ugly. It's sad. It's just really sad."

Developing . . .