Man Abused As Altar Boy Dies in Ohio

By Phil Ray
Altoona Mirror
April 6, 2012

http://www.altoonamirror.com/page/content.detail/id/559636/Man-abused-as-altar-boy-dies-in-Ohio.html?nav=742

Michael Hutchison, the young man who received $2.7 million after a landmark civil case in which he charged the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown with covering up child sexual abuse, died this week.

Attorney Richard Serbin, who represented Hutchison in the case, said he was informed Wednesday by Hutchison's mother, Mary, who brought the civil charges on Michael's behalf in 1988.

The case was tried in Blair County in 1994, and the jury initially awarded Hutchison more than $1 million.

The case remained on appeal for years. When it was settled in April 2008, the payout had ballooned to $2.7 million, including interest and delay damages.

Hutchison charged that he was repeatedly abused by Father Francis Luddy, who served at St. Theresa's parish in Altoona and was a close friend of the Hutchison family.

In Hutchison's last interview with the Mirror, he said, "I don't hate Father Luddy. I pray he gets better."

According to the medical examiner's office in Akron, Hutchison's body was found in his residence on Kenmore Boulevard at 9:10 a.m. Wednesday.

A spokesperson for the office said that the manner and cause of death have not been determined, pending the outcome of toxicology and histology tests.

Hutchison was 44, according to a younger sister, Mary Burnside of Arkansas.

"He was my inspiration growing up," Burnside said.

Serbin was Hutchison's attorney during the two-month civil trial under Blair County Judge Hiram A. Carpenter.

By the time the Hutchison case was resolved in 2008, Serbin had filed lawsuits in more than 20 local cases for instances of abuse dating back to the 1970s.

Hutchison's death hit him hard, he said.

"It just saddens me," said Serbin on Thursday. "What happened to him occurred at such a young age."

He called Hutchison's death "a tragedy" and said the abuse Hutchison suffered was a burden that he carried all his life.

"It's something I have seen over and over - the victims of child sexual abuse suffer. He suffered from age 10 on," Serbin said.

Despite years of abuse, Hutchison was a described as a "personable individual."

He had many plans of helping people who had suffered abuse. In the 2008 interview, Hutchison told the Mirror, "I want to go around to schools and let kids know if they are ever hurt like that, they don't have to hold it in. It will destroy your mind."

Serbin said the burden Hutchison carried prevented him from fulfilling all his hopes.

"He won my heart. It [his death] really saddens me. He was just a good kid," Serbin concluded.

Mirror Staff Writer Phil Ray is at 946-7468.

Contact: pray@altoonamirror.com