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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by David O. Johnson (talk | contribs) at 22:56, 25 October 2023 (→The raid: Added left out sentence from the merged Raid of the Marion County Record article). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Marion County Record
TypeWeekly newspaper
FormatBroadsheet
Owner(s)Hoch Publishing Co., Inc.
PublisherEric K. Meyer
Founded1869
Headquarters117 South 3rd Street
Marion, Kansas 66861
United States
Circulation2,035[1]
WebsiteMarionRecord.com

The Marion County Record is a weekly newspaper published in Marion, Kansas, and the newspaper of record for the city and Marion County. It publishes Wednesdays. Its offices are across the street from the Marion County Courthouse.

The paper was founded as The Western News in 1869 in nearby Detroit, Kansas. It soon moved to Marion, as it went through a series of owners and publishers and several names until 1874. It was then purchased by the Hoch family, which sold it in 1998 to the Meyer family, who had been involved since 1948 and continue to own it.

In August 2023, after one or more people complained to the local police department about reporting which the Record had not published, the police raided the office and homes of staff, seizing computers, reporting materials, and financial records. Joan Meyer, the 98-year-old co-owner, died the day after experiencing the raid. National news coverage of the raid precipitated criticism from local and national journalism organizations.

Origin

A. W. Robinson founded the paper as The Western News, publishing its first issue on September 24, 1869,[2] initially in Detroit, Kansas.[3] Robinson relocated it to Marion Centre in 1870.[citation needed]

John E. Murphy purchased the paper and renamed it The Western Giant. He sold it five months later to C. S. Triplett, who in 1871 changed the name to Marion County Record. The nearby Emporia News praised Triplett's efforts after his first year running the paper.[4] Triplett sold the paper in 1874 to Edward W. Hoch.[5]

Family ownership

Since 1874, two families have owned the Record. The Hoch family owned it for 124 years. The Meyer family, which had been involved with the paper since 1948, bought it in 1998, so that it could continue to be locally owned and operated rather than sold to a larger chain of newspapers.[6][7]

E. W. Hoch ran the newspaper until 1925. Son Wallis Hoch and grandson Wharton Hoch also served as editors. E. W. Hoch and another of his sons, Homer Hoch, both held statewide political offices.

The Hochs acquired several other newspapers and merged them with the Record.[8] Eighteen newspapers were published in Marion, each for fewer than two years, between 1880 and 1895. The Marion Times, founded in 1890 by C. E. Foote and Henry Kuhn, became the Marion Headlight in 1899 when J. J. Buschlen purchased it. Buschlen sold the paper to the Record in 1909.

The Marion Review, founded by D. O. Bell as the Lincolnville Lance in 1907, became the Marion County Lance, moved to Marion in 1908, and changed its name to the Marion Review. C. C. Jones was the Review’s first publisher. Mr. and Mrs. T. B. Matlock, Mr. and Mrs. Burton Smith and Mr. and Mrs. John Riddle followed him as publishers until, in May 1944, the Record and the Review merged to become the Marion Record-Review.

Wharton Hoch purchased the Riddle interest in May 1948. Bill Meyer joined as associate editor three months later. The paper's name reverted to Marion County Record in October 1957. Meyer became editor after Hoch's death in 1967. He and his wife, Joan W. Meyer, and son, Eric K. Meyer, a journalism professor at the University of Illinois,[9] purchased the newspaper from Wharton Hoch's estate in 1998.[6] The Hoch family has remained active in Kansas journalism until as recently as 2016.[10] Bill Meyer died in 2006.[11] Joan Meyer, who compiled the Record’s "Memories" column until her death in 2023, was the newspaper's most senior staff member, having worked there for more than 50 years. Eric Meyer serves as publisher and president of the parent corporation, Hoch Publishing Co., Inc.

Donna Bernhardt, who remains a member of the board of directors along with longtime employee Melvin Honeyfield, became editor after Bill Meyer's retirement in 2003. Susan Berg, now Marion County treasurer, succeeded her as managing editor in 2008. After a series of news editors, including Adam Stewart, David Colburn, Sheila Kelley, and Mindy Kepfield, Eric Meyer assumed the role of editor after his retirement from Illinois in 2021. Other current staff include reporters Deb Gruver, Nicholas Kimball, Rowena Plett, Phyllis Zorn and Ryan Richter, sales manager Debra Steele and office manager Cheri Bentz.[12] The paper's staff is larger than typical for a community of its size, since in 2023 it had five full-time and seven part-time staff, compared to a more typical size of three staff members.[7]

"Official" billing

Bill Meyer described his newspapers as "official", in reference to their status as officially recognized venues for legal advertisements in their cities.[13] While run by the Hoch family in the 19th century, the Record described itself in its masthead as "Official Paper, Of City and County" and was identified by name in a number of city ordinances.[14]

Significant stories

The Record follows a model of journalism that focuses on accountability.[7]

In 2004, the Marion County Record reported that the city was using water from a contaminated water reservoir.[7]

In 2022, the paper investigated a housing development project with possible zoning irregularities.[7]

Present status

The Record is the oldest publication in Marion County; the Peabody Gazette-Bulletin, which the Record purchased in 2001, is three years younger. The Record purchased the Hillsboro Star-Journal in 1999. As of 2001 the Record was one of six weekly newspapers printed by the nearby Newton Kansan, a daily paper.[15]

2023 police raid

Newell Dispute

Sworn affidavits allege that a Marion County Record reporter obtained the driving record of local restaurant owner Kari Newell. Marion Police Department chief Gideon Cody wrote that the records would otherwise not have been accessed if the employee had not impersonated Newell's husband Ryan or lied. The raid originated with a dispute between the Newells; Ryan Newell told The Washington Post that he was concerned that his wife had continued driving and received a liquor license despite losing her driver's license in 2008 for drunk driving. Newell stated that an unnamed source gave him a screenshot of his wife's driving record and that he had passed the screenshot to a friend, who sent the screenshot to councilwoman Ruth Herbel and a Marion County Record reporter.[16] At a city council meeting on August 7, 2023, Kari Newell accused the Record of having her "private personal information". Herbel alerted Marion's city administrator to the incident and advised that police should intervene. Magistrate judge Laura Viar authorized a search on August 11 in connection with a criminal investigation into identity theft using Newell's information.[17]

The raid

On August 11, 2023, the Marion Police Department raided the Record's office and home of one owner, showing a search warrant to publisher Eric Meyer afterward. Officers seized computers, cellphones and reporting materials.[18] The raid came after the paper had received evidence from a confidential source that Kari Newell, a local restaurant owner, had been convicted of drunken driving and continued to drive her vehicle without a valid operator's license, which could have prevented Newell from obtaining a liquor license for her business.[6][19] The search warrant, signed by Marion County District Court Magistrate Judge Laura Viar (who had a history of DUI arrests and driving on a suspended license[20]), alleged identity theft and unlawful use of a computer and authorized police to seize equipment that could have been used to steal Newell's identity.[21] The judge wrote later that she did not have a probable cause warrant.[18]

Bodycam video showed that recently hired Police Chief Gideon Cody was alerted to the presence of printed information about himself during the raid. Cody also spoke with Newell, while the police were conducting the raid on the paper. The stress attendant to being the targets of the raid caused two veteran women reporters to tender their resignations with at least one, Deb Gruver, having discovered that Cody had been anticipating being demoted at the Kansas City Police Department due to allegations against him of workplace harassment, opting instead for retirement there. Gruver intended to depart from the community, and said the raid caused her to suffer exacerbation of a stress-related condition. She filed a federal lawsuit against Cody. The other, Phyllis Zorn, also gave her notice to retire.[22]

The officers also searched the home of Vice Mayor Ruth Herbel.[23]

In a statement published after the raid, Newell alleged someone had accessed her private files by using a piece of postal mail addressed to her by the Kansas Department of Revenue. She claimed this was a violation of the Driver's Privacy Protection Act,[24] which makes it illegal to use "false representation to obtain or use any personal information derived from an individual's motor vehicle record drivers' personal information".[25]

According to the Kansas Reflector, the raid "appears to violate federal law that provides protections against searching and seizing materials from journalists.[6] Cody wrote in a Facebook post that the law allows a search warrant "when there is reason to believe the journalist is taking part in the underlying wrongdoing".[26][9][27]

Previously, Cody had expelled reporters from the paper from a meeting with Jake LaTurner, Republican Congressman from Kansas's 2nd congressional district, reportedly at the behest of Newell, whose restaurant was the location of the meeting.[28] LaTurner's staff, which invited the reporters, apologized.[6] The Record did not initially report on the evidence against Newell, believing the materials to have been leaked in relation to divorce proceedings.[6] Meyer notified the police of the leak. Newell complained to the city council, confirming that she had continued driving after losing her license due to a drunk driving charge, but alleging the newspaper had illegally obtained and disseminated the information.[29] In a post-raid statement, Newell said she has a driver's license and that the prior conviction was too old to influence the liquor permitting process.[24]

After Newell made her public complaint and prior to the raid, the Record published an article about the allegations Newell made against the newspaper at a Marion city council meeting.[6] In that article, the Record reported that a confidential source alleged that local law enforcement was aware that Newell didn't have a valid driver's license and that the city police had ignored "repeated violations of driving laws by Newell".[30]

In post-raid interviews, owner and publisher Eric Meyer stated that the Record was also in the process of investigating Cody, who was named police chief of Marion two months earlier.[31][32][33] The paper had received numerous tips that Cody had left his Kansas City police job under a cloud of misconduct allegations, but the paper had yet to publish an article about the investigation because the sources had not agreed to go on the record. The seized computers contained those allegations and the tipsters' identities.[31] Meyer also said a Record reporter approached Cody seeking comment on the allegations. In response, Meyer said Cody threatened to sue the paper.[33]

One day after the raid at her home, the 98-year-old co-owner of the Record, Joan Meyer, died.[34] The Record claimed she died after being unable to eat or sleep due to stress following the raid.[35] In bodycam footage later obtained by the Record after Eric had left their house during the raid, Joan can be heard telling the police, "You know, if I have a heart attack and die, it's all your fault. . . . If I die, you’re going to be sued for murder."[36] Her son Eric, publisher and co-owner of the newspaper, stated that a coroner determined that the raid contributed to his mother's death.[37]

The incident attracted international attention.[38][19][39] Representatives of 34 news organizations signed a four-page letter condemning Marion police.[24][40] The Society of Professional Journalists board of directors offered up to $20,000 from its legal defense fund to help defray the paper's legal costs.[41][42] The Writers Guild of America, East and the NewsGuild-CWA called for the officers who raided the Marion County Record to be held accountable.[43]

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation announced on August 16 that the seized items would be returned,[44] and that it would proceed with an investigation into the raid without reviewing any of the seized evidence. By the end of the day, Marion County Attorney Joel Ensey withdrew the warrant, and an attorney representing the Record confirmed that all items had been returned, and would be examined for alterations.[45]

On September 28, Mayor David Mayfield suspended Chief Cody.[46] Cody resigned October 2, effective immediately; the city council appointed Officer Zach Hudlin acting chief of police.[47][48]

Marion police chief

Gideon Cody, a captain in the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department’s property crimes unit, was under internal review for allegedly making insulting and sexist comments to a female officer. At the end of the internal investigation into the hostile work complaint, Cody was told that he would be demoted to sergeant, so he resigned with captain rank which had an annual salary of $115,848. In May 2023, Cody was sworn in as Marion’s new police chief, a job that pays $60,000 a year.[49][50]

Record reporter Deb Gruver published anonymous allegations from a former internal affairs detective for KCMO police that Cody had a reputation for bad judgement. In one instance he sped through the active scene of a possible suicide jumper and ran over the body, compromising the whole crime scene. As a result he was transferred and suspended, yet he liked to joke about running over the body.[51][52]

On September 28, 2023, Marion Mayor David Mayfield suspended Police Chief Cody with no reason given, a reversal of an earlier decision to allow him to continue working while the Kansas Bureau of Investigation probed his raid.[53] Under city code, the mayor has the right to suspend, but only the council has the right to fire a city officer.[54] On October 2 Cody resigned.[55]

Lawsuits

On August 30 Record reporter Deb Gruver sued Chief Gideon Cody for more than $150,000 in compensatory and punitive damages for “emotional distress, mental anguish, and physical injury” in violating her First and Fourth Amendment rights. The lawsuit states Cody seized her personal cell phone while his application for the search warrant did not mention her or her phone as evidence of a crime.[56][57] Gruver said her finger had been injured when police grabbed her cell phone out of her hand.[58]

Hall of Famers

Three of the newspaper's former editors are members of the Kansas Newspaper Hall of Fame:[59]

See also

See also: List of newspapers in Kansas

The other newspapers in Marion County are Hillsboro Free Press, Hillsboro Star-Journal, Peabody Gazette-Bulletin. The Free Press and the Gazette Bulletin are owned by Hoch Publishing along with the Record.

References

  1. ^ "Browse Full Member Database". Kansas Press Association. Archived from the original on April 10, 2023. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
  2. ^ "Marion County Record". Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved September 29, 2010.
  3. ^ Connelley, William E. (1916). "Marion County". History of Kansas Newspapers. Kansas Historical Society. p. 233. (HTML version)
  4. ^ "Southwest". The Emporia News. The Weekly News-Democrat. October 4, 1872. p. 2. The Marion County Record has closed volume one. It has been improved very much during the year, and we doubt not Mr. Triplett will make further improvements if he is favored with the patronage he deserves.
  5. ^ "Kansas Governor Edward Wallis Hoch". National Governors Association. Archived from the original on March 24, 2018. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g "Police stage 'chilling' raid on Marion County newspaper, seizing computers, records and cellphones". Kansas Reflector. August 11, 2023. Archived from the original on August 12, 2023. Retrieved August 12, 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d e Kaye, Danielle (August 19, 2023). "Small Kansas paper raided by police has a history of hard-hitting reporting". National Public Radio. Archived from the original on August 20, 2023. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  8. ^ "Kansas Historical Society". Archived from the original on July 26, 2010. Retrieved September 29, 2010.
  9. ^ a b "Police conduct 'chilling' raid of Kansas newspaper, publisher's home seizing computers, phones". USA Today. August 14, 2023. Archived from the original on August 13, 2023. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
  10. ^ Ryan, Kelsey (May 29, 2016). "The power of the press — and the people behind it". The Wichita Eagle.
  11. ^ "Kansas Newspaper Icon is Gone". The Herington Times. November 23, 2006. p. 2.
  12. ^ "Marion County RECORD". Archived from the original on July 6, 2022. Retrieved August 13, 2023.
  13. ^ "Weekly Papers At War". The Salina Journal. January 14, 2001. p. 29.
  14. ^ "Revised Ordinances of Marion Centre, Passed May 21, 1877". Marion County Record. May 25, 1877. p. 2.
  15. ^ Griekspoor, Phyllis Jacobs (June 27, 2001). "Owners of Newton's Daily Newspaper Put It Up For Sale". The Wichita Eagle.
  16. ^ O'Connell, Jonathan; Swaine, Jon (August 19, 2023). "Confidential affidavits detail reasoning for police raid of Kansas newspaper". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 22, 2023.
  17. ^ Andrade, Sofia; Farhi, Paul (August 13, 2023). "After a police raid on a Kansas newspaper, questions mount". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 22, 2023.
  18. ^ a b Moon, Sarah (August 13, 2023). "Police raid Kansas newspaper office and owner's home, seize records and computers". CNN. Archived from the original on August 13, 2023. Retrieved August 13, 2023.
  19. ^ a b Sainato, Michael (August 12, 2023). "Police raid local Kansas newspaper office and homes of reporters". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on August 12, 2023. Retrieved August 12, 2023.
  20. ^ Swaim, Chance (August 16, 2023). "Judge who approved raid on Kansas newspaper has history of DUI arrests". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  21. ^ Cite error: The named reference kr2.0230811 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ Rachel Mipro (October 3, 2023). "Marion police chief resigns after police footage shows him rifling through records about himself". Kansas Reflector. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
  23. ^ Burke, Minyvonne (September 20, 2023). "Marion, Kansas, vice mayor wants police chief suspended following 'illegal' raid at her home". NBC News. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
  24. ^ a b c Tucker, Hailey (August 14, 2023). "Timeline breakdown: Marion police raid newspaper office, owner's home". KWCH. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  25. ^ "Text - H.R.3365 - 103rd Congress (1993-1994): Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1993 | Congress.gov | Library of Congress".
  26. ^ Smith, Sherman (August 12, 2023). "Police defend raid on Kansas newspaper amid backlash over 'brazen violation of press freedom'". Kansas Reflector. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  27. ^ Melendez, Pilar (August 12, 2023). "Kansas Newspaper Says Its Co-Owner Has Died After Being Traumatized by Police Raid". The Daily Beast. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  28. ^ Meyer, Eric; Zorn, Phyllis (August 3, 2023). "Media ejected at open forum". Hillsboro Star-Journal. Archived from the original on August 13, 2023. Retrieved August 12, 2023.
  29. ^ Vargas, Ramon Antonio (August 13, 2023). "'Stressed beyond her limits': co-owner of Kansas newspaper dies after police raid". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  30. ^ Meyer, Eric (August 10, 2023). "Restaurateur accuses paper, councilwoman". Marion County Record. Archived from the original on August 12, 2023. Retrieved August 12, 2023.
  31. ^ a b Kabas, Marisa (August 12, 2023). "A conversation with the newspaper owner raided by cops". The Handbasket, Substack. Archived from the original on August 12, 2023. Retrieved August 13, 2023.
  32. ^ Hanna, John; Beck, Margery A. (August 13, 2023). "A central Kansas police force sparked a firestorm by raiding a newspaper and the publisher's home". AP News. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  33. ^ a b Kaye, Danielle; Folkenflik, David (August 14, 2023). "Kansas newspaper says it investigated local police chief prior to newsroom raid". NPR. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  34. ^ Myers, Steven Lee; Mullin, Benjamin (August 13, 2023). "Raid of Small Kansas Newspaper Raises Free Press Concerns". The New York Times. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  35. ^ Vargas, Ramon Antonio (August 15, 2023). "Who was Joan Meyer? Kansas paper co-owner who rebuked police raid as 'Hitler tactics' – and died a day later". The Guardian.
  36. ^ Meyer, Eric (September 30, 2023). "Cody found reporter's file on his misdeeds during newsroom raid'". Marion County Record. Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  37. ^ Risen, Clay (August 15, 2023). "Joan Meyer, Longtime Editor of a Besieged Newspaper, Dies at 98". The New York Times. Retrieved August 22, 2023.
  38. ^ Hanna, John; Beck, Margery A. (August 13, 2023). "Police questioned over legality of Kansas newspaper raid in which computers, phones seized". WLS-TV ABC 7 Chicago. Associated Press. Archived from the original on August 14, 2023.
  39. ^ Woodward, Alex (August 14, 2023). "Police raid of Kansas newspaper office blasted by press freedom groups". The Independent. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  40. ^ Moon, Sarah (August 13, 2023). "Dozens of news organizations condemn police raid on Kansas newspaper and call for seized materials to be returned". KAKE ABC 10 Wichita. Archived from the original on August 14, 2023.
  41. ^ "SPJ commits to Legal Defense Fund assistance after Marion County Record newsroom raid". Society of Professional Journalists (Press release). Retrieved August 16, 2023.
  42. ^ Nelson, Nick (August 15, 2023). "Society of Professional Journalists offers to pay legal fees for Marion Co. Record". KAKE ABC 10 Wichita. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
  43. ^ Connelly, Eileen (August 22, 2023). "WGA East: Cops Who Raided Kansas Newspaper Must be 'Held Accountable'". TheWrap. Retrieved August 22, 2023.
  44. ^ Wild, Whitney; Moon, Sarah; Yan, Holly (August 16, 2023). "Items seized in a police raid at the Marion County Record newspaper in Kansas will be returned, officials say". CNN.
  45. ^ McMaster, Jessica (August 16, 2023). "Marion County attorney withdraws search warrant against Kansas newspaper; returns items". KSHB. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  46. ^ Swaim, Chance; Moore, Katie (September 30, 2023). "Marion police chief who raided Kansas newspaper suspended: Marion County Record". Retrieved September 29, 2023.
  47. ^ McMaster, Jessica; Kaut, Steve (October 2, 2023). "Marion, Kansas, police chief resigns nearly 2 months after raid on newspaper". KSHB 41 Kansas City News. Retrieved October 3, 2023.
  48. ^ Medina, Eduardo (October 3, 2023). "Police Chief Who Ordered Raid on Kansas Newspaper Resigns". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 3, 2023.
  49. ^ Rice, Glenn E.; Nozicka, Luke (August 16, 2023). "Before Kansas newspaper raid, police chief left KCPD under cloud, facing discipline". Kansas City Star. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  50. ^ KWCH Staff; Loging, Shawn (August 17, 2023). "12 News requests records on Marion police chief's departure from KCMO PD". 12 News KWCH. Retrieved August 19, 2023.
  51. ^ Gruver, Deb (August 26, 2023). "Details of Cody's background emerge". Hillsboro Star-Journal. Archived from the original on August 30, 2023. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  52. ^ Gruver, Deb (August 30, 2023). "More details of Cody's background emerge". Marion County Record. Archived from the original on August 30, 2023. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  53. ^ Swaim, Chance; Moore, Katie (September 29, 2023). "Marion police chief who raided Kansas newspaper suspended: Marion County Record". The Wichita Eagle. Retrieved September 30, 2023.
  54. ^ Zorn, Phyllis (September 30, 2023). "Mayfield reverses position, suspends Cody". Marion County Record. Retrieved September 30, 2023.
  55. ^ Meyer, Eric (October 2, 2023). "Embattled police chief abruptly resigns". Marion County Record. Retrieved October 3, 2023.
  56. ^ KWCH Staff (August 30, 2023). "Reporter suing Marion police chief after raid". 12 News KWCH. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  57. ^ Smith, Sherman (August 30, 2023). "Kansas reporter sues Marion police chief, alleging retaliation in newsroom raid". Kansas Reflector. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  58. ^ Chance Swaim (October 2, 2023). "Police chief who raided small Kansas newspaper resigns". Kansas City Star. Retrieved October 3, 2023.
  59. ^ "Kansas Press Association".
  60. ^ Capace, Nancy (June 1, 2000). Encyclopedia of Kansas. North American Book Dist LLC. p. 264. ISBN 978-0-403-09312-0.
  61. ^ "KU Honors Marion Editor". The Wichita Eagle. October 6, 1974. p. 5.
  62. ^ "International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors". Archived from the original on May 28, 2010. Retrieved September 29, 2010.
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