Reporter’s case among several federal suits over 2023 raids
Attorneys for former Marion County Record reporter Phyllis Zorn and the city of Marion filed a joint statement on Tuesday saying Zorn’s federal lawsuit over a 2023 police raid on the weekly newspaper would be dismissed. The filing came on the third anniversary of the raid.
Under the settlement, Marion will pay $850,000 to Zorn. Randy Rathbun represented Zorn; Jennifer Hill represented the city.
Zorn is a former reporter for the Marion County Record, the weekly newspaper whose offices were raided. She is now retired from the newspaper.
In her lawsuit, Zorn alleged the raid violated press freedoms and the constitutional protections from unreasonable law enforcement searches guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. She also alleged the raid almost immediately led to health problems, including the return of potentially life-threatening seizures that had been controlled for years with medication.
Zorn’s lawsuit was among federal cases filed against local officials over the 2023 raids on the newspaper’s offices, the home of Publisher Eric Meyer, and the home of a former City Council member. The 2023 police raid drew national press-freedom attention.