Wausau Ethics Board orders wider probe, sets deadlines in complaint against Mayor Doug Denny

The Wausau Ethics Board voted to issue additional orders for investigation in the pending complaint against Mayor Doug Denny, directed the orders to a list of city employees and an unnamed contractor, and set a 21-day deadline for responses.

The board said the orders seek statements and any documents, including emails, dated Sept. 19–29, 2024, related to a box that was or could be deployed as an absentee ballot drop box for the 2024 general election. The board also agreed on a schedule for follow-up meetings and set a tentative hearing date.

The board chair opened the discussion by noting that, in April, the board found probable cause to believe a violation of “section 2.03 0.03, paragraph j of the code” had been committed and that the board had previously continued a hearing for 120 days. The chair proposed proceeding at the meeting to adopt further orders for investigation rather than waiting for a potential agreed statement of facts between counsel; the motion to proceed passed unanimously.

Board members reviewed a list of potential witnesses identified after consulting the city attorney. Names specifically mentioned in the meeting materials and by the chair included: Matthew Barnes (chief of police); Eric Lindman (director of public works); Leo Gau (facilities manager); Mary Anne Groot (finance director); Gerard Klein (consulting IT director); Cody Hart (deputy city clerk); Caitlin Bernardi (city clerk); Ashley Kline (customer service, clerk's office); Todd Baeten (deputy police chief); Jeremy Copp (fire chief); Justin Pless (deputy fire chief); and Lisa Rasmussen (president of the common council). The chair also noted an unidentified contractor who wrapped the box was referenced in the respondent’s materials but not named.

The board reviewed draft orders that the chair read aloud: “It is ordered that the subject provide a statement giving the subject's account of any contact the subject may have had from 09/19/2024 through 09/29/2024 with or from the respondent relating to a box that was or could be deployed as an absentee ballot drop box for the 2024 general election in Wausau,” and a second order requiring production of any documentation from that period relating to the box. The orders direct that documents and statements be filed with the City Clerk and then forwarded to the complainants, the respondent and the board.

Board members debated the scope of recipients. One member argued for casting a wide net so that the hearing witness list can later be narrowed; another noted some individuals named in submissions likely would have nothing further to add but said including them would not harm the process. After discussion, a motion to send the orders to the full list of identified potential witnesses was amended and adopted by a 3–1 vote. The meeting record shows that other motions to proceed with issuing the orders and to set a response deadline were approved unanimously.

Board members set the deadline for responses to the orders at 21 days after the date the order is signed. The board chair said the goal of that deadline is to give attorneys an opportunity to explore whether an agreed statement of facts is possible while avoiding undue delay if no agreement is forthcoming.

The board scheduled its next meeting for July 29 at 4 p.m. to review any responses received and to discuss a proposed scheduling order prepared by outside counsel. The board also named a tentative hearing date of Monday, Aug. 25; members noted the precise hearing time would be set later to accommodate participants’ schedules and counsel availability.

Outside counsel Eric Larson cautioned that the written responses and documents gathered by these orders would not substitute for live testimony at the hearing, saying: “remember that we are going to schedule a hearing, and we are going to have testimony and and cross examination at a hearing.” The chair and other members described the written statements as a way to narrow issues and prepare for hearing testimony.

Votes recorded in the meeting minutes include a unanimous vote to proceed with further orders for investigation, a unanimous vote to set the response deadline at 21 days, a 3–1 vote to direct that the orders be sent to the full list of identified potential witnesses, and a unanimous vote to approve the main motion as amended. The minutes show the board adjourned after setting the schedule.

The board packet that accompanied the meeting included an unsigned common council resolution and references to a Wisconsin Elections Commission decision dismissing a related complaint filed by two residents against city clerk Caitlin Bernardi, deputy clerk Cody Hart and finance director Mary Anne Groot. The board chair said the council’s earlier action to hire outside counsel, and the mayor’s veto and subsequent council override, affected the timing of the board’s scheduling decisions.

The board’s orders request information limited to a narrow date range and to contacts or documentation “relating to a box that was or could be deployed as an absentee ballot drop box for the 2024 general election in Wausau.” The board noted that if an identified person has no contacts or documents in that period they may file a statement to that effect.