In a lawsuit filed on Monday, April 1, the Marion County Record — a weekly newspaper in Kansas — and its publisher, Eric Meyer, said that raids by the local police department at the newspaper’s offices and the publisher’s home subjected its staff to unreasonable searches and seizures. The lawsuit also alleges that the raid of the publisher’s home led to the death of his mother, who lived with Meyer.
The police department reportedly seized the publication’s computers, cellphones from reporters and sensitive documents. In total, the plaintiffs estimate that they are looking at more than $10 million in damages.
Meyer claims in the lawsuit that the stress of the police department’s actions during the raids caused his mother’s deadly heart attack a day after the incident.
In a notice to local officials, the paper and its publisher said they believe they are owed more than $10 million. Marion’s city budget is only $8.7 million in total. Meyer said that he does not intend to “bankrupt” the city but cited a “duty to democracy and to countless news organizations nationwide to challenge such malicious and wanton violations.”
The former police chief who was part of the raids, Gideon Cody, claimed the police department’s actions were in response to the newspaper’s story about a local restaurant owner. The article in question uncovered the restaurateur’s past DUI conviction and reported proof of her driving in spite of a suspended license.
Cody, who resigned amid backlash from the raids, claimed he had probable cause to believe the newspaper and reporter engaged in identity theft and other crimes in covering the story.
However, the plaintiffs in the lawsuit contend that the reporter did nothing illegal and say the search warrants were motivated by long-held grudges by local officials.
The Marion County Record looked into allegations of misconduct by Cody before his hire in Marion while he worked for the Kansas City Police Department. When the newspaper reached out to Cody about the accusations, he reportedly threatened to sue the paper if it published the accusations. Meyer told NPR that Cody “has reason not to like us.”
The lawsuit says it seeks justice for “intolerable” violations of U.S. constitutional rights and to prevent the “next crazed cop from threatening democracy,” specifically mentioning Cody.
The newspaper’s attorney said Meyer’s late mother, Joan Meyer, told police who raided her shared home with her son, “Boy, are you going to be in trouble.” The attorney said that he intends to “make sure Joan’s promise is kept.”
The defense attorney who represents the city as well as former and current city officials declined comment.
Meyer, whose father worked for the Marion County Record from 1948 until he retired, bought the paper in 1998. Meyer kept it locally owned following an attempt to buy the paper from a corporate newspaper chain.
