Nurse charged in 2022 patient death

3 other people also indicted in case

Four people, including two psychiatric assistants and a nurse, are facing criminal charges in connection with the 2022 death of a patient at a state-run facility in Columbus.

The charges against Danny Macklin, 24; John Traylor, 65; Augustine Norris, 66; and Julie Willoughby, 40, were filed Friday in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.

According to the indictments handed up by a grand jury in the case, Macklin is charged with murder and felonious assault in connection with the July 23, 2022, death of 57-year-old Paul Fusik, who was a patient at Twin Valley Behavioral Healthcare.

An autopsy report from the Franklin County Coroner’s Office shows Fusik died as a result of a blunt force injury to his head. The report said Fusik was “slammed to the floor by another individual.” The autopsy report also references “video evidence of the assault.”

The Dispatch has requested records from the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, which oversees Twin Valley, as well as from the Ohio Highway Patrol, which court records indicate was the lead investigating agency on the case.

Traylor, Norris and Willoughby are charged with involuntary manslaughter and patient abuse or neglect, according to court records.

Traylor and Norris both worked as psychiatric assistants at the facility, which is located at 2200 W. Broad St., but both retired in spring 2023, according to a facility newsletter available online. Willoughby worked as a nurse.

Records from the Ohio Board of Nursing show there is pending disciplinary action against Willoughby’s license as a registered nurse, however, additional details were not immediately available.

Macklin and Fusik were both being housed at Twin Valley in July 2022 when Macklin is accused of assaulting Fusik, according to court records.

Macklin was being evaluated by forensic psychologists at Twin Valley in order to determine whether he was competent to stand trial in a sexual battery case, according to Franklin County court records.

Macklin was found competent in August 2022.

He has since been convicted and sentenced to four years in prison, which he is currently serving in the Warren Correctional Institution.

Fusik had been at the facility for about a month, according to Cuyahoga County court records, after being found not competent in a 2022 case where Fusik had been charged with murder in connection with the September 2021 death of a woman. A filing from June 13, 2022, shows a Cuyahoga County judge had ordered Fusik to be housed at Twin Valley, which had been evaluated as the best option for his care.

Twin Valley is a facility where courts around Ohio send those accused of crimes for forensic psychological evaluation. The facility also houses patients with severe mental health needs who have been referred there by other mental or behavioral health facilities.

Traylor, Willoughby and Norris are all currently scheduled to have their first court appearances on March 15. A court date for Macklin has not been scheduled, according to court records. bbruner@dispatch.com @bethany_bruner