‘They need to do more’: Kansas DCF under fire after tragic death of ‘vibrant’ Zoey Felix
5 October 2023
MARION, Kan. (KSNW) – The now-former police chief of Marion Gideon Cody filed a response to a federal lawsuit filed by a reporter at the Marion County Record.
The lawsuit comes after members of the Marion Police Department raided the Marion County Record newspaper last month and two other locations, where authorities seized laptops, phones, and other reporting material.
In the lawsuit, reporter Debbie Gruver is seeking compensatory damages in excess of $75,000, punitive damages in excess of $75,000, and legal costs and expenses. In it, she alleges Cody unlawfully took her personal cell phone while authorities raided the newspaper.
Cody is denying allegations of an unconstitutional police raid.
The court document claims that Cody sent the county attorney an email with the draft of the search warrant affidavits and that the county attorney gave Cody approval to move forward with the investigation.
Court documents say the county attorney now tells Cody he did not actually read the documents.
You can find Cody’s official response below: