Wausau Mayor Doug Diny will not face criminal charges over his removal of a drop box intended for absentee ballots before votes were cast in Wisconsin’s 2024 election, a special prosecutor announced Wednesday, according to the Associated Press.

The case stems from Diny’s actions in September 2024, when he removed a drop box outside Wausau City Hall before city workers had unlocked it, AP reported. Wausau elections clerk Kaitlyn Bernarde said voters had already started to receive absentee ballots at the time, AP reported. The mayor later returned the box about a week later after Bernarde raised questions about election integrity, the report said.

AP reported that Diny denied he did anything wrong. In his account, the drop box had not been secured to the ground, and he said anyone could have stolen it; he said he decided to secure it inside City Hall instead. The dispute drew attention beyond Wausau as part of a wider debate in Wisconsin over whether swing-state communities should allow absentee ballot drop boxes.

Before Toney’s decision, earlier investigations and findings already addressed the incident through different lenses. The report said a city ethics board determined in October 2024 that Diny violated Wausau’s ethics policy. It also said a state Justice Department investigation found no basis for charges.

In Wednesday’s announcement, AP reported that Fond du Lac County District Attorney Eric Toney, acting as the special prosecutor, said he would not be able to prove charges beyond a reasonable doubt. Toney pointed to what Wisconsin law prohibits—breaking open a ballot box and tampering with ballots found in a ballot box—but he said the box Diny moved remained sealed and contained no ballots, AP reported.

AP also reported that Toney said the drop box did not meet Wisconsin’s definition of a ballot box. He said the receptacle was intended for multiple city materials, including ballots and payments, and he cited the Wisconsin Elections Commission’s position that ballot boxes are used in polling places rather than for returning absentee ballots.

The Associated Press reported that Diny did not immediately respond to email and voicemail messages seeking comment on Toney’s conclusions.