Raid on Small Kansas Paper Swept Up Information on Police Chief

The Aug. 11 police raid of the Marion County Record, a small Kansas newspaper, swept up cellphones and computers containing information about the outlet’s investigation of the police chief and has drawn rebukes from First Amendment experts and dozens of news organizations. One of the Record’s owners, 98-year-old Joan Meyer, collapsed and died Saturday, one day after police officers and sheriff’s deputies seized items from her home and from the publication’s offices, according to her son Eric Meyer, who is also a co-owner of the paper. The Record’s Kansas City-based attorney, Bernie Rhodes, has sent a letter to local law enforcement demanding that they not review any information on the devices until a court hearing can be scheduled.