The top prosecutor in Marion County, Kan., said Wednesday that there was not enough evidence to support a raid on a local newspaper last week, and that all devices and materials seized in the search would be returned.
Joel Ensey, the Marion County attorney, said in a statement that, in light of insufficient evidence, he ordered local law enforcement to return the seized material.
Police officers and county sheriff’s deputies searched the newspaper’s office, the home of its owner and editor and the home of a city councilman Friday — collecting computers, cellphones and other materials. It is very rare for law enforcement authorities in the United States to seek out and acquire tools to produce journalism.
The searches are part of an investigation into how The Marion County Record obtained and handled a document containing information about a local restaurateur — and whether the restaurant owner’s privacy was violated in the process. The episode put a national spotlight on Marion, a town of about 2,000 people located an hour north of Wichita.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation, an agency that assists law enforcement throughout the state, said in a statement that the investigation will continue.
The search sparked blowback from First Amendment experts, who condemned the raid and urged local law enforcement officials to return the journalists’ equipment. On Sunday, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press sent a letter to the Marion Police Department expressing concern that the raid violated federal law. The letter was signed by more than 30 newsrooms, including The New York Times, and press advocacy organizations.
Joan Meyer, a co-owner of the paper, died Saturday, the day after the raid on the home she shared with her son, Eric Meyer, the newspaper’s publisher. said Mr. Meyer said he was in shock after the attack, adding that he had trouble sleeping. Ms. Meyer, 98, refused the meal, and continued to ask Mr. Meyer if anyone ends the confrontation with the authorities. He died mid-sentence.
Mr. Meyer said the coroner concluded that the stress of the searches was a contributing factor in his death.
Marion’s police chief defended the raid on Saturday, saying that “when the rest of the story becomes available to the public, the judicial system in question will be vindicated.” He declined to comment Wednesday.
Mr. Ensey, the county attorney, was in court Wednesday and unavailable for comment.
The search of the newspaper’s office comes less than a week after Kari Newell, a local restaurant owner, accused The Record of illegally obtaining a government record about steps to restore her driver’s license and then it was shared with a city council.
Mr. Meyer has said since the raid that he and his newspaper, which has not published anything about the document it obtained, did nothing wrong and that the newspaper did not share the document with the councilwoman.
Mr. Meyer, 69, had a long career in journalism, working as a reporter for The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and a professor at the University of Illinois. The Record, which has seven employees and a circulation of about 4,000, is known for its fiery editorials about local officials and unusually aggressive reporting for a paper of its size. But it’s also a small-town paper with small-town concerns: Last week’s top story was about a 10-year-old student playing guitar at a local senior center.
On Wednesday, in an interview at The Record’s office, he said he was vindicated by the county attorney’s decision, adding that he was grateful the paper devices were returned. He criticized the county attorney and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation for releasing statements about the decision before he was told.
He proudly held up a printed copy of this week’s edition, which staff members stayed up until midnight to do because of missing devices. “SEIZED … but not silenced” read the top headline, in 200-point font.
“You can’t let the bullies win, and eventually a bully will cross the line to the point where it becomes so severe that other people come up and support you,” Mr. Meyer said.
Bernard J. Rhodes, an attorney representing The Record, called the county’s decision to revoke its search warrant and return the seized items “a good first step.”
“However, it did nothing to compensate the paper for violating its First Amendment rights when the search was conducted,” he added, “and most regrettably, Joan Meyer was not returned.”
said Mr. Meyer said the last 24 hours of her mother’s life were terrible, but she would have been pleased with the support The Record has received — 2,000 more people have subscribed to the paper in recent days alone — amid the ongoing controversy. its law enforcement agencies.
“He likes to be thought of as almost a martyr for the cause,” he said.