Marion County newspaper publisher speaks after police raid
The publisher of a long-standing Marion County Record said his paper was raided this week by the Marion Police Department, who took computers, servers and cell phones.
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) - The publisher of a long-standing Marion County Record said his paper was raided this week by the Marion Police Department, who took computers, servers and cell phones.
The incident is a violation of First Amendment rights, according to publisher Eric Meyer.
The paper is struggling to make its Tuesday publishing deadline while missing essential equipment, according to publisher Meyer, who said the investigation by Marion police was unfounded.
According to Meyer, there were questions about a story one week before the police came into his business. His newspaper notified the sheriff and the police chief that they'd obtained documents from the state that a local business owner had driven on a suspended license after getting a DUI.
"They started the investigation because we told them this document had come into us with the allegation that police were ignoring the driving for 14 years or something like that," Meyer said.
The Marion County Record told law enforcement they had no plans to publish the information in a story, but one week later, police came into the building and seized equipment, according to Meyer. They also went into his home, Meyer said.
The co-owner of the newspaper Joan Meyer, who is also Meyer's mother, died a day after the raid into her home.
"I asked the coroner who had previously been one of her attending physicians, I said, 'Do you think the stress caused this?'" Meyer said. "He says, 'Absolutely.' In other words, they killed my mother."
The raid was an unnecessary show of power and a violation of the freedom of the press, according to Meyer.
In a statement, the Marion Police Department said they had a right to search a new agency office if a journalist was suspected of a crime listed in a search warrant.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation said it assigned an agent to the case earlier in the week at the request of the Marion County attorney. The KBI was asked to join an investigation into allegations of illegal access to confidential criminal justice information, according to the agency. The KBI was not present when the warrants were served.
The Marion Police Department and the Marion County Attorney asked the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) to join an investigation into allegations of illegal access and dissemination of confidential criminal justice information. The KBI assigned an agent to this case last Tuesday, and has been assisting since that time. The KBI agent did not apply for the search warrants in question, and he was not present when the warrants were served.
Director Mattivi believes very strongly that freedom of the press is a vanguard of American democracy. Without free speech and a free press, our society is not likely to see appropriate accountability of public officials. But another principle of our free society is equal application of the law. The KBI is entrusted to investigate credible allegations of illegal activity without fear or favor. In order to investigate and gather facts, the KBI commonly executes search warrants on police departments, sheriff’s offices, and at city, county and state offices. We have investigated those who work at schools, churches and at all levels of public service. No one is above the law, whether a public official or a representative of the media.
Melissa Underwood, KBI communications director
For now, even though the paper lost vital equipment taken by police, Meyer said the plan is to publish the weekly issue Tuesday.
"We will publish the newspaper," Meyer said. "We will publish the newspaper if I have to grab a pencil and write it on a piece of paper and hand it to everybody as they walk around the town."
Meyer plans to sue over the incident.
Meantime, dozens of news organizations, including CNN, The Washington Post and The Associated Press, signed a four-page letter condemning the actions of the police department.