Mayor Doug Diny confirms DOJ raid, calls it 'Stasi tactics'
The Federalist first reported the raid, but Diny confirmed it to The Wausonian
Update: Fixed some minor grammatical issues.
A report emerged late last week from a publication called The Federalist saying that Mayor Doug Diny’s home and office had been raided by the state Department of Justice.
The raid was supposed to have been part of the DOJ’s investigation into Diny’s removing a ballot box from the steps of city hall. The Wausonian first broke the news on Tuesday following Sunday’s ballot box removal.
That incident set off a firestorm, with some calling for the mayor to resign while others defended the move. The city’s clerk filed a complaint with the Marathon County District Attorney, who then punted the case to the Portage County Sheriff’s Office.
But ultimately the Department of Justice took up the investigation.
Diny in a press conference about the city’s budget confirmed the raid to The Wausonian when this publication asked about the raid and the story.
Diny said The Federalist story is true, that DOJ agents on Wednesday raided both his office at city hall and his home in what he called a coordinated effort.
He said he wouldn’t get into the details when WSAU conservative commentator Meg Ellefson asked further questions. Diny did called them “Stasi tactics” and confirmed to The Wausonian that he was currently without his phone.
He has not yet spoken with DOJ investigators in relation to the investigation, Diny says.
But, Diny says, the raid did not disrupt city business and that city leaders need to focus on what is important, including the budget.
“It’s an unfortunate distraction,” Diny said. “The process is somewhat surprising, I haven’t experienced this Stasi-like enforcement in the past. One would have expected a conversation with the mayor about what happened.”
You can see the livestream replay of the press conference here.
Read the story that kicked it all off:
UPDATED: Did the mayor illegally remove a ballot box?
UPDATED: More details from Diny, and the news about a video coming soon.
Brian,
Do you know which Wisconsin State Statute Mayor Diny is alleged to have violated?
Jeesh Brian you could at least attempt to appear non-partisan. You are ridiculous. Your bias is showing. This is not journalism it’s an opinion piece.