PORTLAND – The lawyer for a man accused of murdering a Bridgton woman 12 years ago plans to have an expert examine the DNA evidence that police say recently linked his client to the slaying.
Even if the DNA discovered at the scene results in a match to Michael Hutchinson, that doesn’t necessarily mean he killed Crystal Perry, said Robert Andrews, of Portland.
“Mr. Hutchinson claims his innocence, and the evidence in the case is not strong enough to judge before it is presented in court,” Andrews said in a telephone call Tuesday.
The court granted his motion for up to $1,500 of public money for an expert witness as well as an equal amount for a private investigator, according to court papers.
The expert hired by the defense will conclude whether results of analysis of DNA evidence gathered and tested by the state are reliable.
“It’s possible an expert will say there’s something terribly wrong here, and the DNA cannot be used,” Andrews said.
Two types of DNA were found by state investigators: one at the scene; the other on Perry’s body, Andrews said.
Prosecutors believe they have an “absolute” match to Hutchinson from DNA found on the victim’s body, Andrews said. The other DNA evidence is less conclusive, he said.
Andrews declined to comment on the strength of the state’s case. No expert has provided him yet with analysis of the evidence.
Hutchinson, a self-employed mason, was arrested in April and charged with killing Perry, who was 30 years old when she was killed. She was stabbed to death in the early morning of May 12, 1994, at her Route 93 home in Bridgton. Her 12-year-old daughter was home at the time. She fled the scene, running a mile down the road to a restaurant for help.
Hutchinson was 19 years old when Perry was killed, working in construction. Police cited DNA evidence as helping to link him to the slaying. A Cumberland County grand jury handed up a murder indictment.
Hutchinson, now 31, was arrested for a probation violation stemming from an unrelated 2003 assault. He had been in jail and remains behind bars without bail.
Prosecutors got a court order granting them records relating to any medical treatment Hutchinson was given for a two-month period starting from the date of Perry’s murder.
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