Photo: Tribune News Service
Court records provide new insight into a police raid on a Kansas newspaper that has faced immense backlash. In the documents, Marion Police Chief Gideon Cody justified the raiding of the offices of the Marion County Record and the home it the paper's co-owner by suggesting reporter Phyllis Zorn broke the law while investigating a local restaurant owner.
Cody claimed that Zorn may have committed identity theft when searching for public records about a previous drunk driving conviction by Kari Newell.
"Downloading the document involved either impersonating the victim or lying about the reasons why the record was being sought," Cody said.
Despite his justification for the raid, the department was ordered to return all of the items that were seized during the raid on August 11. Marion County Attorney Joel Ensey reviewed the case and determined the police had provided little evidence to justify raiding the newspaper's office.
"As a result, I have submitted a proposed order asking the court to release the evidence seized. I have asked local law enforcement to return the material seized to the owners of the property," Ensey said last week.