Review of Centre County cases roughly doubles after police officer discloses false reports
Centre County’s district attorney said Friday prosecutors are now reviewing about 100 criminal cases tied to a former Spring Township police officer who admitted to falsifying at least some of his reports, roughly doubling the number identified last week.
The expanding review comes after officer Stephen T. Kutches disclosed in a pre-employment questionnaire that he included false observations in at least some reports from DUI arrests, raising questions about his credibility and prompting prosecutors to reexamine cases that relied on his work.
Centre County District Attorney Bernie Cantorna said notices were sent to the Centre County Bar Association, which represents about 200 lawyers and judges. The majority of cases under review are traffic violations such as DUI, Cantorna said.
Kutches, who was hired by Spring Township police in December 2021, resigned effective April 18. He was working as a patrolman as of early February and was making $37.23 an hour, about $77,450 per year.
Spring Township police Chief Adam Salyards said last week in a news release he received information about the reports in late March, immediately initiated an internal affairs investigation and placed Kutches on administrative leave. All information was then forwarded to Cantorna’s office, Salyards said.
“The officer did not work any shifts from the time the information was received through his resignation,” Salyards said in a written statement. “The Spring Township Police Department has fully cooperated with the District Attorney’s Office and all other relevant governmental agencies and will continue to do so as the matter proceeds.
“Integrity and public trust are central to our mission, and we will continue building them with our community.”
Kutches is at least the second Spring Township police officer to resign in the past 15 months.
Former officer Bryce Greene was slated to be fired in February 2025 at Salyards’ recommendation following what the township described as a “careful and thorough investigation.”
Greene instead verbally resigned hours before the township’s supervisors would have met to consider his termination. He appears to have since been hired by the Mifflin County Regional Police Department.
The details of that investigation are unknown. Salyards and township Manager Mike Danneker declined comment in February 2025 when reached by the Centre Daily Times, saying they could not discuss a personnel matter. Greene was not charged with a crime.
Cantorna said Friday that the police department has his full “confidence and support.” Between body camera footage and prosecutors examining every case, Cantorna said he believes any long-term issues would be caught over time.
Kutches’ admission came in a pre-employment questionnaire for a job with the Pennsylvania State Police. According to a notice filed by county prosecutors, Kutches claimed observing a key DUI indicator — nystagmus, a rapid and repetitive movement of at least one eye — when he hadn’t.
The CDT has not confirmed the exact nature of the question to which Kutches responded. He also recorded a person over the phone without their consent, according to the notice. Cantorna said the state attorney general’s office is investigating the matter.
Prosecutors last week intended to drop four open DUI cases that relied on Kutches’ observations, including one against a Penns Valley man who was scheduled to be sentenced Monday.
Cantorna said his office had no prior concerns with Kutches’ credibility, and the county’s top prosecutor also said neither supervisors nor prosecutors had a reason to doubt the falsified reports before Kutches’ disclosure.
A man who answered a phone call Friday at a number listed for Kutches disconnected when reached by a CDT reporter. An earlier voicemail left at the same phone number has not been returned.
