Staff writer
County attorney Michelle Brown has set in place changes she hopes will keep county law enforcement agencies in their proper lanes.
Other changes she seeks to make are in hope of recruiting attorneys for the county.
Brown has ordered that no applications for search warrants are to go to a judge without Brown’s review and signature.
An August, 2023, warrant application went awry when former county attorney Joel Ensey failed to review or sign the application before he had an assistant take it to a magistrate judge, who in turn had to contact former Marion Police Chief Gideon Cody to come sign the application before she granted it.
The resulting raids on the Marion County Record office and the homes of its publisher Eric Meyer and Vice Mayor Ruth Herbel garnered worldwide condemnation of the police department and sheriff’s office.
Brown also wants law enforcement officers to send affidavits directly to her instead of simply to her office.
“As it is, that affidavit bypasses me,” she said.
Getting the affidavit directly would give her an opportunity, even on evenings and weekends, to review it.
“I want to be involved so I can ask for follow-up,” she said.
Brown has made sure court documents in criminal cases, whether formal charges or journal entries of such events as a plea bargains or sentencing, are promptly filed with the court clerk so they are available for the public to see.
When Brown took office in January, eight criminal cases still were expected to go to trial. Some may not go to trial after all.
“Things have been moving so fast as far as defense attorneys calling,” she said.
In one case, an alleged offender has been scheduled for mediation so the case might be settled without a lengthy trial.
Brown also plans to talk with law enforcement agencies to see whether her office can help with officer training.
She eliminated a $45 fee to apply for a diversion agreement.
She also wants to see what sorts of initiatives might inspire local students to go to law school.
Brown serves both Marion and Morris counties, doing some Marion County duties from her Council Grove office.
She was assistant Morris County attorney from May, 2024, until she was elected Morris County attorney.
Her background working as a prosecutor goes back to 2005, when she became a Geary County prosecutor.