A Wichita man who wrongly came under suspicion in the BTK serial killings had his reputation destroyed when a local television station reported his name, his attorney told jurors Tuesday.

But the attorney for Wichita station KSNW argued that its coverage of his Dec. 1, 2004, arrest was accurate and the station was just doing its job.

Roger Valadez sued Emmis Communications, then owner of KSNW, and its news director, Todd Spessard, claiming the station defamed him in its coverage of his arrest on minor unrelated warrants for trespassing and housing violations.

Valadez came to the attention of the task force investigating the BTK killings after it received a tip fingering him as a possible suspect. Police used a battering ram to knock down the door of his home and went in with guns drawn. They took a DNA sample from his mouth, and 20 officers with the task force searched his home for evidence that might link him to the killings. Several boxes of possible evidence were removed from the house.

Valadez never was charged in connection with the slayings. He was cleared long before the arrest of Dennis Rader, who confessed to all 10 BTK killings.

“Not a single day goes by Roger Valadez doesn’t feel the pain inflicted on him by KSN,” his attorney, Craig Shultz, said in opening arguments.

But defense attorney Bernard Rhodes told jurors that Valadez did not even see the media coverage until his lawyer showed it to him and noted that the only professional from whom Valadez sought help was a lawyer – not a psychologist or counselor.

The station also distanced itself from the coverage: “This wasn’t a KSN story – this story was everywhere,” Rhodes said.

Spessard, who is named as a defendant in the lawsuit, took the stand Tuesday. Emmis Communication sold KSNW in January.

Spessard, who remained as news director after the sale, said he went into the station after getting a call sometime between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. after KAKE-TV reported a possible break in the BTK investigation.

“We were just reporting what was happening,” Spessard testified.

Valadez is seeking more than $75,000 and a public apology, according to the lawsuit.

KSNW was the only station that named Valadez on the air.

“Every other station respected the rights of Mr. Valadez,” Shultz said.