Chip StewartAug 11, 2023
Small-town newspaper offices in Kansas raided by entire police force after writing about a politician and a restaurant owner they had been reporting about. https://kansasreflector.com/2023/08/11/police-stage-chilling-raid-on-marion-county-newspaper-seizing-computers-records-and-cellphones/
Police stage 'chilling' raid on Marion County newspaper, seizing computers, records and cellphones • Kansas Reflector

In an unprecedented raid Friday, local law enforcement seized computers, cellphones and reporting materials from the Marion County Record office, the newspaper's reporters, and the publisher's home.

Kansas Reflector
Show threadGlenn FleishmanAug 11, 2023
@MediaLawProf That city is going to pay so much money in damages
Show thread@krisnelson

@glennf @MediaLawProf Ugh, never a good sign that this kind of press attack is happening at all! But yes, this kind of crap is why e.g. 42 U.S.C. § 1983 exists, but those things are just a huge amount of work and don't immediately resolve the problem of publishing this/next week anyway. Often the damage/silencing is already done, even if taxpayers eventually pay out or injunctions issue (& often the real perpetrators get away with it anyway).

Hopefully some "adult in the room" can step in ASAP

Aug 12, 2023 at 12:22amWeb
Show threadChip StewartAug 12, 2023
@krisnelson @glennf reminds me of Mink v. Knox out of Colorado about a decade ago - but so much worse
Show threadCautionWIP (he/him) 🏳️‍🌈🇨🇦🕎Aug 12, 2023
@krisnelson @glennf @MediaLawProf I wonder how much of their work is done on cloud-based systems. Do you think they have/had physical servers that were grabbed, or can they *just* log on via home/alternate systems?
Show threadTor Iver WilhelmsenAug 12, 2023
@krisnelson @glennf @MediaLawProf Heck, it’s why the press is explicitly named in the 1st Amendment.