Man who testified against own mum when he was 7 years old over sister's murder breaks silence for the first time in 17 years
Warning: This article contains discussion of child abuse which some readers may find distressing.
The man who testified against his own mother over his sister's murder when he was just a child has broken his silence for the first time in 17 years.
In February 2008, then-seven-year-old AJ Hutto took to the stand when his mum, Amanda E. Lewis, was on trial for first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse.
It came after her seven-year-old daughter, Adrianna Elaine Hutto, was found unresponsive in her family's pool in Esto, Florida, in August 2007.
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Lewis then called 911, claiming she had found her daughter in the pool and she was not breathing.
Emergency services rushed Adrianna to a nearby hospital where she was later pronounced dead about an hour after arrival.
Her untimely death was initially treated as an accident until Adrianna's half-brother AJ, who was six years old at the time, revealed in a videotaped interview with police what he saw.
AJ told authorities that he witnessed his mum 'dunk' Adrianna in the pool as punishment for misbehaving.
"Mama dunked my sister. She done some stuff that she ain't suppose so my mama got mad, so she throwed her in the pool," he said.
When the case went to court, the prosecutor asked the child to explain why he had drawn a picture of stick figures around the pool to which AJ eerily responded: "That's my mama.
"Killing my sister."
He added that his mum was 'putting her hand over her [Adrianna's] face'.
Lewis was eventually convicted of murder and sentenced to life in jail, with an extra 30 years for child abuse in 2008, as per the Daily Record, but has since maintained her innocence.
In 2016, Lewis made an appearance on Piers Morgan's ITV series, Killer Women, in 2016 to 'prove that I’m innocent. Proving what he said I didn’t do'.
In the segment, she claimed she 'couldn't believe they were doing this' when her son testified against her in court, adding per the Independent: "I love him no matter what, I will always love him. He is in no way blame him for what happened."
And now, nearly two decades after that fateful day in court, AJ has looked back on the proceedings and told the Daily Mail: "I don't believe I was, what they've called, coached or anything like that.
"I just told them exactly what I saw word for word."
At first, AJ explained that he didn't notice his mum in court after being separated from her for a number of months, continuing: "It was heartbreaking. You know, she's my mother.
"But there was also some relief that what we were going through at the time was finally coming to an end.
"It's court appointed that we cannot see each other, and I've wanted to keep it that way, just so nothing's getting brought back up.
"All the feelings and emotions and the traumas getting brought back into light."
AJ, who is now 24 and lives under a different name, added that his adoptive family was a much 'happier household' and it was 'almost a 360 difference'.
"Just darkness, trauma. A lot of abuse. Physically abused, both Adrianna and I were hit," he continued when reflecting on his childhood.
AJ added: "The difference between the two families was night and day.
"It's been a long time since I've had to talk about it, so I kind of remember some things about my previous life.
"And for the most part, I remember the abuse. Sometimes we wouldn't even see it coming. It was literally sometimes we were blindsided."
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence regarding the welfare of a child, contact the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000, 10am-8pm Monday to Friday. If you are a child seeking advice and support, call Childline for free on 0800 1111, 24/7.
Rhiannon Ingle