KANSAS CITY, Kan.—Marion County, the County Sheriff, and one of his deputies have approved a settlement with Ruth Herbel, former Vice Mayor of Marion, Kansas, and her husband Ronald, over the sheriff’s participation in an unconstitutional raid on their home in 2023. Ruth and Ronald teamed up with the Institute for Justice (IJ) to sue the city and county of Marion over the violations of their constitutional rights.
In the settlement, the county defendants consent to the court entering judgment against them, admitting that they violated the Herbels’ Fourth Amendment rights by helping to draft and execute a bogus warrant on the Herbels’ home in retaliation for Ruth exercising her First Amendment rights. The county defendants have also agreed to pay the Herbels a financial settlement and issued the following 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 Police Department’s search warrants on their homes and the Marion County Record. This likely would not have happened if established law had been reviewed and applied prior to the execution of the warrants.”
Former Police Chief Gideon Cody and the city are not included in the settlement. The case against them will now enter discovery.
“The Marion Sheriff’s Office helped draft and execute a bogus warrant on the Herbels’ home in retaliation for Ruth’s political speech. Their participation in the raids is inexcusable,” said IJ Senior Attorney Jared McClain. “We’re grateful that they’ve owned up to violating the Herbels’ rights and apologized. We look forward to continuing our fight for accountability against the city officials who instigated this whole lawless mess.”
Ruth Herbel has lived in Marion for over 60 years. Rather than opt for a quiet retirement, she ran for and won a seat on the city council in 2019. For years, a political conflict simmered, with Ruth and the local newspaper on one side and Mayor David Mayfield and his allies on the other. But that local clash made headlines in the summer of 2023 when police raided the offices of the Marion County Record and Ruth’s home.
“This settlement is vindication. The Sheriff’s Office helped make my community think I am some kind of criminal,” said Ruth. “I still hope to hold everyone responsible who abused the law. That’s why I’m eager for our case to move forward against Chief Cody and the city. No one in America should think they can use a sham investigation to go punish their political opponents.”
With a bogus warrant in hand, police raided Ruth’s home, and Cody seized her cell phone. Even after the warrant was withdrawn, local officials continued to look for a way to prosecute Ruth. Government officials cannot use criminal investigations to punish their political opponents, which is why Ruth filed her lawsuit.