Kansas newspaper co-owner, 98, dies after being ‘stressed’ by questionable police raid

The newspaper’s co-owner in Kansas reportedly died after a police raid on the publication and its staff, following their acquisition of damaging information about a local businesswoman. The newspaper chose not to publish the information.

Joan Meyer who was 98- years old died after being “stressed beyond her limits and overwhelmed by hours of shock and grief” On Friday, the police conducted a raid on the home of a woman and her son as part of an investigation into the Marion County Record.

“She had not been able to eat after police showed up at the door of her home Friday with a search warrant in hand,” wrote The Record. “Neither was she able to sleep Friday night.”

Joan Meyer was waiting at home for a Meals on Wheels delivery when the police knocked on her door.

“She tearfully watched during the raid as police not only carted away her computer… but also dug through her son Eric’s personal bank and investments statements to photograph them,” said the paper.

Eric, the 69-year-old publisher of the Record, threatened legal action against the City of Marion and those involved in the search. He cited legal experts who agreed that the city violated federal laws and his team’s constitutional rights.

“Our first priority is to be able to publish next week,” Meyer said, “but we also want to make sure no other news organization is ever exposed to the Gestapo tactics we witnessed today.”

In addition to Meyer’s demise, it was reported in the newspapers that an officer forcefully snatched a cell phone from the hand of one of their reporters, resulting in an injury.

The local paper was raided by the city’s five-officer force and two sheriff’s deputies due to a feud with a local restaurant owner, Kari Newell.

The Record had possession of leaked documents that could have led to the revocation of Newell’s liquor license. The documents showed that the restaurateur had been convicted of driving under the influence and had continued to operate a vehicle without a license.

The newspaper chose to inform the police instead of publishing the story. They suspected that the documents were leaked by someone close to Newell’s ex-husband.

The businesswoman claimed in a city council meeting that the newspaper obtained and disseminated sensitive documents illegally. The paper published a story on Thursday to set the record straight, but on Friday, there was a raid.

John Galer, chairperson of the National Newspaper Association, criticized the raid as outdated and in conflict with the First Amendment.