Portage sheriff's deputy facing rape charges had a mixed career

A Portage County sheriff's deputy facing rape charges in Cuyahoga County had his ups and downs during his nearly decade-long tenure with the sheriff's office.

According to Wilson Kuzyk's personnel file, which the Record-Courier attained through a public records request, Kuzyk received praise from both superiors and the public in recent years.

"I am writing this letter to commend Deputy Wilson Kuzykon his exemplary performance during the past year," wrote a supervisor of Kuzyk's to Sheriff's Major Larry Limbert in December 2018. "Deputy Kuzyk has matured as a Deputy and has become a real asset to this agency."

But prior to that, Kuzyk had some rocky times, including nearly being fired twice in 2015.

A Cuyahoga County grand jury indicted Kuzyk, 34, of Stow, on two counts of first-degree felony rape in March. The indictment followed a Lyndhurst police investigation into an allegation that Kuzyk raped a woman on Oct. 19.

In a letter dated Nov. 2, the day Lyndhurst police informed the sheriff's office of the investigation, Kuzyk was placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.

Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski then informed Kuzyk that he was being placed on unpaid administrative leave in a March 17 letter. He was also informed he was the subject of an internal investigation that could result in termination of his employment.

The sheriff's office did not respond to phone calls seeking an update on Kuzyk's employment status.

Kuzyk pleaded not guilty to the charges during his April 5 arraignment in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court and was released on a $2,000 bond.

He is scheduled for a May 17 pretrial hearing.

Trouble arises early in deputy's career with Portage County Sheriff's Office

According to his personnel file, Kuzyk was hired in June 2013, initially as a "civilian employee." After graduating from the Kent State Police Academy in July, he was appointed a part-time deputy and assigned to security at the Portage County Courthouse.

In July 2014, then Sheriff David Doak informed him in a letter that his status was changing to full-time deputy with a one-year probationary period.

"Congratulations and keep up the good work," then Doak wrote.

But then he started having problems, according to documents in his file.

In an October 2014 probationary performance evaluation, Kuzyk was rated at "meets requirements" in five performance criteria, but "needs improvement" on eight others.

The evaluation noted Kuzyk was on a performance improvement plan and "is eager to learn."

In May 2015, Kuzyk was notified he would be suspended without pay for five days for issues involving writing and submitting reports and taking a possibly intoxicated pedestrian to a residence and releasing him without consulting with a supervisor.

On July 7, 2015, the day his probationary period ended, Doak sent Kuzyk a notice of termination. That same day, Kuzyk successfully appealed to Doak to reconsider, saying he planned to attend "report writing class" in August.

Monthly performance reviews were ordered for Kuzyk and in November, he was informed he was being placed on paid administrative leave pending possible termination because he had "not been able to meet the standards set forth by this administration."

However, he was instead transferred to the Portage County Jail as a corrections officer, with a pay reduction. The outcome of a Nov. 9 meeting with Kuzyk was that he "does not at this time meet the requirements to continue as a road deputy" but "does exhibit many good qualities that may at some point enable him to return to the position of deputy," then Major Dale Kelly wrote in a memo to Doak.

Required 'above average supervision'

In July 2016, Doak informed Kuzyk in a letter that he would be reinstated as a full-time deputy. He would be serve a 90-day probationary period with refresher training.

In November 2016, Kuzyk was placed on a six-month performance review plan. A supervisor notified Kuzyk that the action was being taken because Kuzyk did not submit a written statement concerning an allegation that another deputy had been rude to a dispatcher, which Kuzyk reportedly witnessed.

Comments written in a December 2017 evaluation state that Kuzyk was eager and proactive as a deputy, loyal to coworkers and regularly arrived early for his shifts, but also required "above average supervision" and tended to be argumentative with superiors and defensive when receiving "constructive criticism."

Other than a reprimand for failing to properly request a day off in September 2018, there are no other mention of issues in Kuzyk's file until the rape investigation.

Deputy accused of rape recently completed training on handling sexual assault cases

In June 2020, Kuzyk received a letter of commendation for the empathy he showed in helping a male in mental health crisis, resulting in a peaceful resolution to the situation and the man receiving the help he needed.

In March 2021, Kuzyk was among several sheriff's office personnel that the Portage County Prosecutor's Office praised for an investigation into the sexual assault of a juvenile, particularly since it resulted in a guilty plea, sparing the victim from having to testify during trial.

In August 2021, Kuzyk received a letter of commendation in connection with a traffic stop, during which a "large amount of narcotics," including meth, fentanyl and LSD, and other drug-related items were found.

The file also included a couple of letters the sheriff's office received from community members praising Kuzyk.

"Mr. Kuzyk listened to what I had to say and appeared to truly care about the situation," one letter writer wrote.

"Wilson, great job," Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski wrote at the bottom of the letter. "I love to see these types of letters! Keep up the good work."

His file also includes 25 certificates, mostly from the Ohio Peace Officer Training Commission, showing that he successfully completed a wide variety of training programs in 2022

Three programs were related to handling sexual assault cases. The last is dated Oct. 23, less than two weeks before he was placed on paid administrative leave.

Reporter Jeff Saunders can be reached at jsaunders@recordpub.com.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Portage sheriff's deputy facing rape charges had a mixed career