Diny: I wanted to send a message by moving the box
The Ethics board, after an 9+ hour meeting, will issue a decision in the matter on Wednesday
The most eye-opening bit of testimony in an Ethics Board hearing that spanned more than nine hours Friday came toward the end, when Mayor Doug Diny took the stand.
In a line he repeated several times Friday, Diny said he was sending a message to City Clerk Kaitlyn Bernarde when he removed a ballot box from the steps of city hall on a Sunday in September. That was in response to what he said he felt was insubordination on the clerk’s part in putting out the ballot box.
Those hoping for a resolution to a complaint filed in the wake of that message Friday likely left disappointed.
The board after hours of testimony beginning at 10 am and a closed session that lasted until about 7:30 pm announced it would hold a meeting Wednesday to formalize their decision, which by then would be in writing.
To recap, The Wausonian broke news on Sept. 24, 2024 that Diny had removed the box from the steps of city hall on the preceding Sunday, Sept. 22, after the clerk had placed it out in order to use it for the November election. National media ultimately took up the story and the clerk filed a complaint with the district attorney’s office. That ultimately resulted in a state Department of Justice investigation that has not yet concluded.
Diny’s explanation at the time was that he was concerned about the box’s security. Under questioning from his attorney, Andrew Erlandson, Diny expressed something that hadn’t come up yet in The Wausonian’s reporting - that Diny felt the clerk’s action to place the box on the steps of city hall was an act of insubordination against his leadership, and that moving the box was meant to send a message.
Diny testified that he felt like he’d been punched in the gut by the city clerk when she announced she was placing the box for the November election, since he thought they’d reached an understanding that the issue would go to the city council.
“I moved [the box] in there because I felt I would send a message that there was some insubordination, and I felt she would respond quickly,” Diny testified under oath.
That didn’t happen. Under testimony, neither the city clerk nor city attorney had conversations with Diny post box removal until the clerk issued an email later in the week demanding that the box be returned by noon on the Friday following its removal. Diny described City Attorney Anne Jacobson as being “radio silent” that week, with the door to her office closed.
Bernarde testified that she was upset with the mayor at the time and still, to this day, is upset about his actions regarding the ballot box. She left city hall on a Friday with plans for the ballot box to be re-wrapped and bolted down on Monday before it was in use. She arrived Monday to find it missing.
Diny testified that he never intended the incident to go viral, bringing national media attention to the point where reporters were walking into his office unannounced, leading to the buzzer system city hall now has. And he said much of that was due to the work of “civilian activists,” including one who took down posts after he had an attorney send them a cease and desist.
The day also included testimony from several witnesses. Those included Police Chief Matt Barnes, IT Director Gerry Klein, Public Works Director Eric Lindman, Facilities Manager Leo Gau and City Council President Lisa Rasmussen.
But more compelling testimony came from Bernarde and Jacobson. The two hadn’t responded to subpoenas to provide statements in the Ethics Board’s investigation or sit for depositions, Diny’s attorney had said publicly earlier in the process. That was out of concern for potentially interfering in the ongoing criminal investigation. A special counsel was recently appointed in that case but, beyond that, no charges have been announced.
Despite their previous concerns, Bernarde or Jacobson answered all questions asked and didn’t invoke the criminal investigation during their testimony as a reason not to answer a question.
Testimony painted a picture of frustrated discussions Monday after Barnarde arrived at work to find the ballot box was missing. She entered Finance Director Maryanne Groat’s office, and they called Eric Lindman. Lindman told them he believed the box was in the mayor’s office.
At several points during the hearing while Dexter was questioning Kaitlyn Bernarde, Diny’s attorney Andrew Erlandson objected to Dexter’s questioning, suggesting he was leading the witness.
At times their exchanges bordered on confrontational, with Erlandson at one point saying loudly, “Mr. Dexter, I am not going to argue with you.”
More interesting testimony came from the city attorney. Jacobson testified that on two occasions in July she warned Mayor Diny about pressuring the clerk about her election decisions.
She said there wasn’t any problem with Diny offering an opinion to the clerk in regards to the box. But she was concerned about the mayor going further than that.
Jacobson said the mayor was pacing back and forth in her office, upset that the clerk hadn’t consulted him before announcing that she would put out the ballot box. Jacobson advised him not to interfere.
Jacobson testified that Diny said he was concerned that Kevin Hermening, former Marathon County Republican Party Chair, would sue the city if they put out the ballot box. Jacobson says she responded that the city couldn’t operate out of fear of threats.
Diny was not asked about that during his testimony.
Much of the testimony Friday hinged around the Priorities USA State Supreme Court decision. The court reversed an earlier decision rendering ballot boxes illegal, and seemed to place their purview with that of the municipal clerk.
Other lines of questioning hinged around elected versus appointed clerks. In one surprise exchange under cross-examination from Erlandson, Bernarde indicated she wasn’t aware of the fact that the mayor had the power to fire her. (An elected clerk would be accountable to the electorate come election time, and would have more autonomy than an appointed clerk typically does.)
Overall, much of the testimony Friday provided more minute detail of what were already pretty well-known facts. No one disputed that Diny on Sunday went to work and saw the ballot box, locked and unsecured, and moved it inside to his office. And that it stayed there until Friday. The testimony painted a more detailed picture of the events and how the players involved responded at various points, but the basic facts have been known for some time.
The central issue - whether the mayor, as he would argue, was ensuring that city employees’ duties were being carried out as the law spells out — or whether he was using his authority unlawfully to overturn what a court specified as the municipal clerk’s decision — is what the board presumably decided in closed session Friday.
The rest of us will find out Wednesday — more than a year from the date of the incident.
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