Overview
- The special prosecutor’s office announced Wednesday that no criminal charges will be filed against Mayor Doug Diny after a bipartisan review found the evidence fell short of the beyond-a-reasonable-doubt standard.
- Prosecutors said the City Hall receptacle was sealed, not bolted down, and designed to accept mixed city materials, so it was not a ballot drop box under state law and contained no ballots when it was moved.
- They disclosed the decision after Tuesday’s local elections to avoid affecting races in Brown County and Marathon County.
- The city’s Ethics Board previously ruled in October 2024 that Diny violated Wausau’s ethics code over the move and ordered him to follow the code going forward.
- The review urged municipalities to follow Wisconsin Elections Commission best practices and called for statewide rules to clearly define and protect drop boxes in a state where such standards are not fully set in law.