Video shows 98-year-old Kansas newspaper owner giving cops hell for 'Hitler tactics' during raid, just hours before her death

Police and sheriff's deputies in Marion, Kansas, raided the office of a local newspaper as well as the home of its co-owners, Eric Meyer and his 98-year-old mother, Joan Meyer, on Aug. 11. The elderly woman died of a heart attack the following day.

Before her summons to heaven, the elderly woman made sure to give the raiders hell, which was captured on camera.

What's the background?

Marion Police Chief Gideon Cody submitted three search warrant applications earlier this month, alleging a Marion County Record reporter illegally obtained Kansas Department of Revenue information concerning Kari Newell.

Newell is a local restaurateur who lost her driver's license due to a 2008 DUI and is seeking a liquor license for her establishment, according to the Kansas City Star.

TheBlaze previously reported that the Marion County Record, the Meyers' paper, was looking into Newell's past, having received a confidential tip concerning her DUI.

Bernie Rhodes, an attorney for the newspaper, suggested that the reporter had been provided with a copy of Newell's driving record, then used a public website to verify the information.

In the affidavit used to obtain the search warrant, Chief Cody claimed, "Downloading the document involved either impersonating the victim or lying about the reasons why the record was being sought," reported the Daily Beast.

Eric Meyer indicated he had not run the story because he suspected that Newell's estranged husband might have leaked the information in an attempt to hamper her efforts to obtain a liquor license.

"We thought we were being set up," said Meyer, who subsequently informed police.

Following Newell's public claim that the Record had obtained information about her past illegally, the paper then published its own version of events the day before the raid, hoping to "set the record straight."

The next morning at 9 a.m., Marion County District Court Magistrate Judge Laura Viar signed a search warrant, authorizing cops to seize computers, cell phones, digital communications, servers, hard drives, and any documents connected to Newell.

While the alleged identity theft was the given reason behind the raid, some suspect Cody may have had an ulterior motive.

Chief Cody formerly worked for the Kansas City Police Department. Facing a hostile work complaint and threat of demotion, he reportedly left the force and assumed a post at the MPD in April.

According to Eric Meyer, the Record was recently investigating Cody's background and time in Kansas City. The corresponding information was allegedly stored on computers targeted in the raid.

Meyer's last stand

Video has emerged showing Joan Meyer standing tall with the aid of her walker, dressing down police officers while they searched her residence.

"Don't you touch any of that stuff," says Meyer, as officers rifle through her belongings. "This is my house! ... You a**hole."

At one point, Meyer confronts an officer, asking him point-blank, "Did your mother love you? Did you ever love your mother?"

When asked how many computers were in the house, she responds, "I'm not gonna tell you."

Before she died, Joan Meyer claimed, "These are Hitler tactics, and something has to be done."

Her son, Eric Meyer, suggested police had either been "malicious or incompetent."

Search of 98-year-old newspaper co-owner Joan Meyer's house that contributed to her deathyoutu.be

Meyer's account of the raid is detailed in the coroner's report, which notes it was "extremely upsetting to Joan and caused her to remain angry and upset throughout the day and night," reported the Star.

The 98-year-old stayed up until 3 a.m. or 4 a.m. the next morning before going to bed. When she finally awoke, around 2 p.m., she reported feeling dizzy and unwell.

Shortly thereafter, she stop talking mid-sentence, then stopped responding altogether, prompting her son to call 911 and perform CPR.

Joan Meyer was pronounced dead at 3 p.m. on Aug. 12. Her funeral was held on Saturday.

The Record indicated she had been "otherwise in good health for her age" but was "stressed beyond her limits and overwhelmed by hours of shock and grief," reported the Wrap.

Wrongful death and insufficient evidence

The search warrants were withdrawn on Aug. 16, just days after Meyer's passing.

Marion County Attorney Joel Ensey, whose brother owns the building housing Newell's restaurant, stated there had been "insufficient evidence" to establish a "legally sufficient nexus between this alleged crime and the places searched and the items seized."

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation has since taken over the case.

Rhodes, the attorney for the Record, told the Star, "We have stopped the hemorrhaging. ... But it does nothing about taking care of the damage that has already occurred from the violation of the First Amendment in the first place."

Whereas Rhodes contends the raid was illegal, Cody has defended sending his five officers to confiscate the journalists' belongings, reported the Star.

Rhodes has indicated, "We are exploring all options, including a wrongful death claim."

The Marion County Record is also planning to file a federal lawsuit against the city.

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