News outlets condemn police raid on Kansas newspaper

Over 30 media companies, including the Associated Press and The New York Times, signed a letter Sunday denouncing a police raid on a small-town Kansas newspaper. Police searched the Marion County Record’s office and the owners’ home on Friday. One of the owners, a 98-year-old, died the next day. The paper said the stress from the raid contributed to her death. Journalists at the news outlet reportedly had information about a DUI received by a local restaurant owner. The Record had decided not to publish the information and had notified authorities. The newspaper accused the police department of conducting the raid in response to its coverage of local politics.

Was the raid legal? Many media outlets and legal experts are saying the raid violated First Amendment rights. Federal law prohibits raids on newspaper offices unless it is to prevent death or bodily harm, or if there is reasonable suspicion of breaking the law. Law enforcement is supposed to issue a subpoena for materials except in narrowly construed circumstances.

Dig deeper: Read Emma Freire’s report in WORLD Magazine about how neighborhoods are using surveillance cameras to combat crime.