One of the special prosecutors tasked with reviewing the actions of law enforcement officers who raided the Marion County Record says more details will become public as criminal and civil cases proceed.
A special prosecutor in court documents filed Tuesday says former Marion Police Chief Gideon Cody “induced a witness to withhold information” in the days after Cody led a raid on a newspaper office, the publisher’s home and the home of a city councilwoman.
Marion County Record editor and publisher Eric Meyer began speaking out about the police raid of his home and office before the officers could even retreat to their celebratory pizza party. He said it never entered his mind to keep quiet.
Details of messy relationships in the small town of Marion, paired with the inner workings of a corrupt local government, have painted a picture that’s complicated in the year since police raided the local newspaper’s office.
Special prosecutors plan to charge former Marion Police Chief Gideon Cody with a low-level felony for his actions following the raid he led last year on the Marion County Record and the homes of the newspaper publisher and a councilwoman.
The magistrate who authorized a police raid on the Marion County Record escaped discipline by making claims that contradict statements in lawsuits about how the search warrants arrived in front of her and whether the police chief swore they were true before she signed them.
Former Marion Councilwoman Ruth Herbel alleges in federal court that city officials orchestrated an illegal raid of her home — alongside the raid of the Marion County Record — as part of a conspiracy to silence criticism.
Kansas special prosecutors have received “a detailed synopsis” of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation’s ongoing review of last year’s police raid on the Marion County Record.
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation is nearly finished with its inquiry into potential criminal activity surrounding the raid on the Marion County Record last year and will turn over findings to special prosecutors later this month, state authorities said Tuesday.
The Marion County Record has filed a lawsuit against local authorities who planned and carried out an illegal raid last year, accusing the “co-conspirators” of seeking revenge for unfavorable news coverage through falsified and invalid search warrants.
