Kansas County Officials Settle for $3 Million in Newspaper Raid Case
Several county officials involved in a newspaper raid in a small Kansas town in 2023 have agreed to pay a total of $3 million to three journalists and a city councilor. The Marion County Sheriff's Office issued a statement expressing regret for its role in the search warrants executed on the homes of Eric and Joan Meyer, Ruth and Ronald Herbel, and the Marion County Record. The county commissioners approved agreements with Eric Meyer, Ruth Herbel, and two other journalists, coinciding with consent judgments in their federal cases against the county.
Eric Meyer, the owner and editor of the Marion County Record, stated that the agreements with the county could facilitate the ongoing legal battle against the city. The agreements with journalists Deb Gruver and Phyllis Zorn, affected by the raids, are more settlement-oriented and do not include admissions of regret. The county will pay Eric Meyer $1.5 million, Ruth Herbel and Phyllis Zorn $650,000 each, and Deb Gruver $250,000, with insurance covering most of the funds.
In a separate lawsuit against former Marion police chief Gideon Cody, Deb Gruver settled for $235,000 earlier this year. Phyllis Zorn has resigned from her position at the Marion County Record. The agreements reached on Monday settle the county's obligations in four federal lawsuits against the city of Marion and Marion County officials related to the 2023 raids. The agreements grant the county and sheriff's office immunity from future legal action concerning the searches and seizures at the Marion County Record and the homes of Eric Meyer and Ruth Herbel.
As part of the agreements, Marion County Sheriff Jeff Soyez, Detective Aaron Christner, and Undersheriff Larry Starkey will be made available for official interviews that could be used in other legal disputes. The cases against the city of Marion, its police department, and former officials like Mayor David Mayfield and former police chief Gideon Cody are not covered by the agreements.