County Attorney Rejects Warrant Used In Raid Of Small Kansas Newspaper, Asks Court To Force Cops To Return Seized Devices

Last week, cops in a small Kansas town decided they’d just toss aside the First Amendment and raid a local newspaper.

There were competing narratives. The first was that the paper was in possession of information related to the drunk driving arrest of local business owner Kari Newell, who had allegedly been convicted of DUI and driving without a license.

The thing is the paper never made this information public. Instead, it verified the information handed to it by a source and then contacted the Marion, Kansas police department.

The second narrative appeared during an interview with the surviving co-owner of the paper, Eric Meyer. This one suggested the raid of the paper’s offices and the home of 98-year-old co-owner, Joan Meyer, were prompted by the paper’s ongoing investigation of Marion police chief Gideon Cody’s misconduct history, which allegedly involved sexual misconduct.

I used the word “surviving” for a reason. Joan Meyer died shortly after suffering through the raid of her paper’s office and the raid of her home. During these raids, nearly every electronic device possessed by Meyer and the paper was seized, including the paper’s servers and Joan Meyer’s personal computer and internet router.

According to what little information was available (including a very noncommittal statement by the Marion PD), the supposed crime was identity theft aided and abetted by unauthorized computer access.

But whatever the real reason for this disturbing abuse of government power, it appears to be headed towards a swift denouement. At least some of this accelerated pace can be attributed to the piqued interest of outside government entities, which arrives on the heels of nationwide coverage.

Outrage from Eric Meyer, the owner and publisher of the Marion Record, appears to have reached the KBI [Kansas Bureau Investigation].

On Wednesday, the law enforcement agency announced in conjunction with the Marion County Attorney that the investigation would continue without the examination of any evidence seized during the raid.

That accompanies a letter sent by the paper’s attorney, Bernard Rhodes — a letter that points out the raids violated the First Amendment, Fourth Amendment, and state laws that protect journalists and their sources.

All of this has added up to Marion County Attorney Joel Ensey announcing that he has formally withdrawn the warrant and has asked for law enforcement to return everything officers seized.

On Monday, August 14, 2023, I reviewed in detail the warrant application made on Friday, August 11, 2023 to search various locations in Marion County including the office of the Marion County Record. The affidavits, which I am asking the court to release, established probable cause to believe that an employee of the newspaper may have committed the crime of K.S.A. 21-5839, Unlawful Acts Concerning Computers. Upon review, however, I have come to the conclusion that insufficient evidence exists to establish a legally sufficient nexus between this alleged crime and the places searched and items seized. As a result, I have submitted a proposed order asking the court to release the evidence seized. I have asked local law enforcement to return the material seized to the owners of the property.

The matter remains under review until such time as the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the agency now in charge of the investigation, may submit any findings to the office for a charging decision. At such time, a determination will be made as to whether sufficient evidence exists under the applicable rules and standards to support a charge for an offense.

Some good things there. The call for the release of the documents. The call for the release of the seized electronics (albeit on that doesn’t appear to demand law enforcement destroy any copies of data investigators may have made). And the correct call on the incident in question: it appears unlawful, even if the county attorney (for reasons related to his continued employment) isn’t willing (yet) to go on record as calling “unlawful.”

There are some bad things, too. It seems unlikely the KBI will uncover evidence of criminal activity by newspaper staff. But it does allow another law enforcement agency to root around in seized data and try to find some connection between the charge leading to these rights violations, in hopes of turning them into something resembling probable cause.

The county attorney has asked law enforcement to release everything seized. But it’s only a request. That the Marion PD has yet to publicly state it will release the seized devices suggests it’s not nearly as willing to admit it’s in the wrong. Nor is it as willing to make things rights. And that’s going to end up costing county residents their tax dollars, which will be added to the tab already rung up by local cops — one that now includes shattered trust and an extremely damaged relationship with the town it serves.