-Man who talked of 'burning Bush' before presidential visit sentenced to 37 months
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) - A man who made a remark about a "burning Bush" during the president's March 2001 trip to Sioux Falls was sentenced Friday to 37 months in prison.
Richard Humphreys of Portland, Ore., was convicted in September of threatening to kill or harm the president and said he plans to appeal. He has said the comment was a prophecy protected under his right to free speech.
Humphreys said he got into a barroom discussion in nearby Watertown with a truck driver. A bartender who overheard the conversation realized the president was to visit Sioux Falls the next day and told police Humphreys talked about a "burning Bush" and the possibility of someone pouring a flammable liquid on Bush and lighting it.
"I said God might speak to the world through a burning Bush," Humphreys testified during his trial. "I had said that before and I thought it was funny."
©2002 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.-
The way I see it this guy was guilty of poor taste in humor at most. I often heard much worse said about Clinton.
--------------------
We have it in our power to begin the world over again.
Thomas Paine, Common Sense, 1776
|
Previous
Index
Next
Flat
Freedom of Speech?
Edit
Reply
Quote
