Kansas orders deletion of seized files

A Kansas judge has ordered authorities to delete all electronic copies made from files seized during a police search of the Marion County Record, a small local newspaper. The searches, carried out nearly two weeks earlier, removed computers and cellphones from the paper’s office. The court order requires that digital copies created from those devices be destroyed, limiting how officials may keep and use material gathered in the raid.

The raid drew strong criticism from press groups and local residents who said the action threatened First Amendment protections for journalists. Attorney Bernie Rhodes, representing the newspaper, said a court order was necessary to make sure copies of the paper’s work would not remain with authorities. State officials say the search began after allegations the paper accessed certain information unlawfully, while the paper’s reporting suggests that access may have been legal.

Who did it? And what's their angle?

Every conspiracy theory pins one culprit and one motive on the same story. The same story can spawn any number of theories — different culprits, different motives. That's part of how you spot a conspiracy theory: the same event can be "explained" any number of ways.

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