Marion County has agreed to pay more than $3 million and issue a formal apology following a law enforcement raid on the Marion County Record in August 2023 that drew nationwide attention over press freedom.

The raid, carried out by Marion County sheriff’s deputies in coordination with city police, targeted the newspaper’s offices, the home of publisher Eric Meyer, and the residence of former city council member Ruth Herbel. Authorities seized computers, cellphones, and rifled through reporters’ desks.

“They intentionally wanted to harass us for reporting the news, and you’re not supposed to do that in a democracy,” Meyer said Tuesday. He added he hopes the settlement discourages similar actions against other news organizations.

The incident led to five federal lawsuits against the county, city, and local officials. Meyer’s 98-year-old mother, Joan, the paper’s co-owner, died of a heart attack the day after the raid, an event Meyer attributes to the stress caused by the law enforcement actions.

The raid stemmed from a dispute involving a local restaurant owner whose driving record the newspaper had obtained while reporting on her request for a city liquor license. It also followed the newspaper’s investigative coverage of former police chief Gideon Cody, who oversaw the operation.

Experts questioned the legality of the raid. A local prosecutor stated three days later that insufficient evidence existed to justify the search. Doug Anstaett, retired executive director of the Kansas Press Association, said the raid violated Kansas’ journalist shield law, enacted in 2010 to protect reporters from improper government access to confidential materials.

“The press has basically been under assault,” Meyer said. Under the settlement, the estate of Joan Meyer will receive $1 million, Eric Meyer and two former reporters plus the paper’s business manager will split $1.1 million, and Herbel will receive $650,000. Meyer said he may use funds to sustain the paper or encourage young journalists to work in rural communities.

The sheriff’s office has issued a formal apology. “The Sheriff’s Office wishes to express its sincere regrets to Eric and Joan Meyer and Ruth and Ronald Herbel for its participation in the drafting and execution of the Marion County Police Department’s search warrants on their homes and the Marion County Record,” the statement said.

Cody resigned as police chief in October 2023 and faces trial in February on a felony charge of interfering with a judicial process. Two special prosecutors concluded the newspaper, its staff, and Herbel committed no crimes before the raid, describing the warrants as based on inaccurate information and an inadequate investigation.

University of Kansas media law professor Genelle Belmas called the raid “an egregious violation of the First Amendment rights” of Meyer and the weekly newspaper.