It seems to me there is no particular official position. A Roman Catholic who happened to have notoriety died, and he had a Roman Catholic funeral.
Or have I missed something here?
Actually, you haven't missed a thing. What's missing, if I may be so bold, is leadership in the Church that is able and willing to clarify the vagaries that a situation like this brings to the fore. The law of the Church can't cover every conceivable circumstance, nor should it try to. That should be left to the priest or bishop concerned in a particular situation, with charity, comapassion, but above all with fidelity and truth. Unfortunately, that requires that the priest or bishop concerned possesses those qualities.
Yep. Reminding me of the story that Queen Mary became queen of England, she had her father’s body removed from his crypt in Westminster Abbey, and dumped into the Thames.
The official position of the church is Canon Law. It is freely available on-line here:
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/_INDEX.HTM
Fr. Venditti cited the appropriate canon and it is quite clear.
Living in a PUBLIC state of grave sin means Mr. Kennedy should not have been allowed a Catholic funeral. As Fr. Venditti said, it brings scandal to the church and confuses those who are trying to live according to the teachings of the church.