OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A federal judge has ruled in favor of Nebraska state officials in a lawsuit that challenged the state’s law requiring picketers to stay at least 500 feet from funerals.

U.S. District Judge Laurie Smith Camp said in her decision Wednesday that the law does not infringe on the constitutionally-protected free speech rights of Westboro Baptist Church members.

Shirley Phelps-Roper, a prominent member of the Topeka-Kansas based church, sued in 2009. She argued, among other things, that the Nebraska law is selectively enforced.

The church protests at funerals throughout the country using anti-gay chants and signs because it believes God is punishing U.S. military members and others for defending a nation that tolerates homosexuality.