Marion County Record Lawsuit Settlement

Almost a year post the raid on The Marion County Record, a Kansas weekly newspaper, a former reporter, Deb Gruver, has reached a $235,000 settlement in a lawsuit stemming from the search. The incident triggered a widespread debate on press freedoms.

The settlement, finalized on June 25, marked the resolution of the lawsuit filed by Deb Gruver against Gideon Cody, the former Marion city police chief who resigned amidst growing pressure in October. Ms. Gruver’s lawsuit alleged that Mr. Cody caused injury to her hand while seizing her personal cellphone during the raid. The newspaper’s publisher, Eric Meyer, confirmed that body-camera footage supported Ms. Gruver’s claims.

Mr. Meyer disclosed that the body-camera audio captured Mr. Cody expressing that the incident “made his day.” Following the events, Ms. Gruver decided to depart from the newspaper last autumn, citing her unwillingness to work in a community where the majority of leaders showed a lack of regard for the Fourth Estate and the U.S. Constitution, as reported by The Record.

On August 11, 2023, local law enforcement authorities, along with county sheriff’s deputies, conducted a raid at The Record’s office and the residences of a councilwoman and Mr. Meyer. The raid at the newsroom triggered public outrage and ignited a nationwide conversation on the protections afforded by the First Amendment.