Police Chief Gideon Cody of the Marion Police Department in Kansas, who authorized and led the infamous raid on a small newspaper has been suspended Saturday night by the city's Mayor, Dave Mayfield. The raid has been mired in controversy since it was announced. 

Marion Mayor Dave Mayfield in a text said he suspended Chief Gideon Cody on Thursday. He declined to discuss his decision further and did not say whether Cody was still being paid. Voice messages and emails from the AP seeking comment from Cody's lawyers were not immediately returned Saturday.

The raid, which occurred in August, surprised many people, due to the circumstances surrounding it when it became known to the public. My colleague Jeff Charles wrote:

In a bizarre and alarming incident, local law enforcement in a Kansas town raided a newspaper, seizing computers, cell phones, and reporting materials. It is believed that the police department’s actions were the result of a response to the media outlet’s publishing of articles portraying a restaurant owner in a negative light.

This is a rather strange case based on the details that are currently available. But the most obvious concern in this tale is the potential violation of the First Amendment protections of freedom of the press. Here’s what happened:

In an unprecedented raid Friday, local law enforcement seized computers, cellphones and reporting materials from the Marion County Record office, the newspaper’s reporters, and the publisher’s home.

Eric Meyer, owner and publisher of the newspaper, said police were motivated by a confidential source who leaked sensitive documents to the newspaper, and the message was clear: “Mind your own business or we’re going to step on you.”

The city’s entire five-officer police force and two sheriff’s deputies took “everything we have,” Meyer said, and it wasn’t clear how the newspaper staff would take the weekly publication to press Tuesday night.

The raid followed news stories about a restaurant owner who kicked reporters out of a meeting last week with U.S. Rep. Jake LaTurner, and revelations about the restaurant owner’s lack of a driver’s license and conviction for drunken driving.

A few days later, in a follow-up piece, Charles shared that the local prosecutor announced that he was withdrawing the warrant that was used to execute the raid due to insufficient evidence. 

The announcement was made on Wednesday:

On Wednesday, Marion County Attorney Joel Ensey said his review of police seizures from the Marion County Record offices found “insufficient evidence exists to establish a legally sufficient nexus between this alleged crime and the places searched and the items seized.”

“As a result, I have submitted a proposed order asking the court to release the evidence seized. I have asked local law enforcement to return the material seized to the owners of the property,” Ensey said in a news release.

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation said Monday it was leading the investigation into the raid and what allegedly prompted it.

The news here is really disturbing and should concern every journalist in America. The prosecutor should also face an investigation at the very least, as he was the one who signed the warrant in the first place; which begs the question, what evidence was there, if any, to sign off on a search warrant -- especially after announcing there was insufficient evidence to issue said warrant? As the Fox report notes, the sudden shift in support is a little odd.

Cody's suspension is a reversal for the mayor, who previously said he would wait for results from a state police investigation before taking action.

Vice-Mayor Ruth Herbel, whose home was also raided Aug. 11, praised Cody's suspension as "the best thing that can happen to Marion right now" as the central Kansas town of about 1,900 people struggles to move forward under the national spotlight.

With all the reversals going on, we have to see how many more dominoes will fall in this line of suspensions.