Group plans 'kiss-in' at San Diego LDS temple

SAN DIEGO — A gay rights group plans to stage a mass kissing demonstration outside the San Diego LDS temple as a show of support for a gay couple cited for trespassing in Utah after sharing a kiss on church property.

The Empowering Spirits Foundation says the "kiss-in" is intended as a peaceful rally to encourage dialogue between The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the gay community.

The event is scheduled for Wednesday evening at the temple near La Jolla, Calif.

It would be the third kissing demonstration held since Matt Aune and Derek Jones were cited for trespassing on the church-owned Main Street Plaza on July 9 in Salt Lake City.

The couple refused to leave the plaza when security guards who saw the kiss said the behavior was inappropriate. An LDS Church spokesman said the two men "engaged in passionate kissing, groping, profane and lewd language and had obviously been using alcohol." They said the men became belligerent when they were asked to stop the behavior and they were asked to leave church property.