WHEELING — Following four days of testimony from 10 witnesses and approximately nine hours of deliberation, a jury of 12 found Monongalia County Sheriff’s Deputy Lance Kuretza not guilty on both charges he was facing.
The jury of seven men and five women entered the deliberation phase of the trial Monday afternoon and, after an overnight break, delivered its verdict shortly before 3 p.m. Tuesday.
Kuretza was accused of deprivation of rights under color of law — a federal charge sometimes used against law enforcement officers when it’s thought they used their power to violate another person’s rights under the U.S. Constitution — and falsification of records following a January 2018 incident at a Morgantown hotel. He was indicted by the federal government in August 2022 following an investigation by the FBI. The trial began July 10 in the U.S. District Court in Wheeling.
Defense attorney Lyle Dresbold of Pittsburgh’s David J. Shrager and Associates, who represented Kuretza, said, “These charges had to be brought. This was a case that had to be tried and I’m so grateful that our work paid off and the jury was able to see the facts the way I saw them and that they followed the law and came to the right decision.”
Dresbold said this was probably the hardest trial he has defended as the attorneys for the United States, Sarah Wagner and Kyle Boynton, really “brought their A game” and were able to provide a massive amount of discovery on the case, including two grand juries’ worth of investigation and dozens of witness interviews.
Following the verdict, William Ihlenfeld, United States Attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia, said, “The jury has spoken. The system worked. I respect the verdict but won’t let it deter us from the important mission of civil rights enforcement.”
Kuretza was placed on administrative leave from the Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department following his indictment in August. His status at the department was not known in time for this report.
The Dominion Post reached out to Mon County Sheriff Perry Palmer following the verdict, but he was not prepared to comment Tuesday afternoon.
