A Georgia judge who convinced a prosecutor to indict a local newspaper publisher and his attorney after investigative reporting on use of a racial slur to describe a defendant and another man in open court now finds herself in the hot seat after the story became a national outrage.

Charges against Fannin Focus publisher Mark Thomason and attorney Russell Stookey were dropped abruptly on Thursday by elected district attorney Alison Sosebee, who had won indictments upon the request of Superior Court Judge Brenda Weaver last month.

Weaver’s conduct now will be reviewed by the state’s Judicial Qualifications Commission, an independent agency that investigates alleged judicial misconduct and can recommend sanctions including removal from office.

The saga began when Thomason sought to prove court deputies used the n-word in 2015 after the word was used by a since-retired judge and an assistant district attorney to describe at least two men including a defendant the prosecutor introduced as “[------] Ray.”

A court stenographer sued Thomason, alleging she was defamed by characterizations that she did her job poorly, but dropped the suit and reportedly had a $16,000 check for attorney fees cut from a judicial account -- something Thomason sought to prove in part to establish he should not be forced to pay for the fees.

Weaver, chief superior court judge of Georgia’s Appalachian Judicial Circuit, asked Sosebee for an indictment, and a grand jury complied late last month, finding fault in a subpoena served on a bank and an open records request submitted to the county government.

Thomason was indicted for “making a false statement” in the open records request when he sought records of checks “cashed illegally.” Grand jurors found that characterization “a false and fictitious representation.”

Thomason and Stookey both were indicted for committing identity fraud and attempted identity fraud for preparing subpoenas-- something Robert Rubin, president of the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution appeared to be “using the legitimate court process” for acquiring records.

Weaver told Rhonda Cook of the Journal-Constitution, whose initial report thrust the case into the national spotlight, that “I don’t react well when my honesty is questioned” and that she feared the reporter and attorney could misuse the bank account information.

Weaver and Sosebee did not respond to requests for comment on Thursday after Cook first reported news the charges had been dropped.

The judge wrote in a letter the prosecutor attached to a court filing that it "was never my intent" to undermine anyone's First Amendment rights, and that Sosebee had more important cases to pursue.

Thomason says he now intends to file a First Amendment lawsuit.

“I think [Weaver’s] intention was to have me arrested, have me locked up -- the bond conditions I was put under basically shut the paper down,” Thomason tells U.S. News. “It would seem her intention was to bring the newspaper to its knees.”

Thomason, the local paper's founder, and Stookey posted $10,000 to get out of jail on June 24. He says he views Sosebee and Weaver equally responsible.

Thomason submitted to various conditions for his release, he says, including a ban on contacting a list of people -- some he says he didn’t know, the waiving of his Fourth Amendment right against unwarranted searches and submission to random drug tests.

The newspaper publisher was forced to supply a urine sample three times -- on Friday, Tuesday and Thursday. “It was definitely a hard pill to swallow,” he says.

Although it received an intense bout of national attention, he says the Fannin Focus hasn’t benefited financially from the controversy. The 10-employee paper with a print circulation of 4,000 has lost advertisers friendly to the judge, Thomason says.

The paper posts news directly to Facebook rather than on a website, and has launched a GoFundMe page to cover costs, raising $55 as of Thursday afternoon.

It’s unclear what consequence may be faced by Sosebee aside from potential re-election troubles. Thomason says he was contacted by the state attorney general’s office about her conduct, but that office could not be reached for comment on whether it had launched an investigation. Its phone rang without answer Thursday.

Developments before the Judicial Qualifications Commission, meanwhile, are sure to be watched with interest.

Weaver, the target of at least one publicly announced misconduct complaint, is chairman of the seven-member disciplinary body that reviews allegations against judges.

Commission director Mark Dehler says Weaver has recused herself from review of any complaints involving her own conduct, and that the commission now is considering how to proceed in accordance with its rules.

The judicial disciplinary process isn’t quick. If the complaints are found to present a substantive allegation, an outside attorney will be hired to act as prosecutor and a one-year process for ultimate resolution would not be unusual.

The Georgia chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists says it filed a complaint alleging possible violations of Georgia's judicial code of conduct, but the group’s president, Ellen Eldridge, says it’s not allowed to share the document.

If the commission determines the matter non-frivolous and finds lapses in allowable judicial conduct egregious enough to justify dismissal from office, the state supreme court will review that decision.

The state supreme court nominates two members of the seven-member commission, Weaver being one of their picks.

Though he intends to sue, Thomason isn't calling for heads to roll, sidestepping questions about whether he would like the prosecutor and judge to lose their jobs. He says for the moment he’s just grateful that far-flung support brought his prosecution to a hasty conclusion.