L. Hrutkay
CHARLESTON – In the midst of her ex-husband staging one on the legal front, Lidella Wilson Hrutkay is mounting a political comeback.
After a four year absence, Hrutkay, 52, is seeking a return to the House of Delegates. She is one of seven candidates seeking a seat to the 24th District that is exclusively Logan County.
In 2000, Hrutkay was first elected to then the 20th District which, following the 2001 redistricting, became the 19th that included all of Logan, most of Lincoln and parts of Boone and Putnam counties.
Following three successful re-election bids, Hrutkay was defeated for a fifth term in 2008.
Following her re-election in 2004, Hrutkay's ex-husband Mark, who served as the treasurer for her first campaign, was indicted for mail fraud. The charge stemmed from an investigation by the F.B.I that found Mark failed to disclose on forms he submitted to the Secretary of State's Office $10,000 he gave to then-Sheriff John Mendez to help promote Lidella's campaign.
The investigation, which Mark cooperated fully with, found Lidella had no knowledge of the payout he made to Mendez. As part of his sentence, Mark was ordered to make restitution to the government of $45,000, two years worth of Lidella's legislative salary.
As part of his conviction, Mark agreed to surrender his law license.
The state Supreme Court ordered his disbarment on May 11, 2005.
Last January, he filed a petition for reinstatement.
Prior to their divorce in 2002, the Hrutkays were partners in the law firm of Wilson and Hrutkay. Following their graduation from WVU College of Law in the late 1980s they started as associates at the firm which was then owned by Lidella's father, Amos Wilson.
The Hrutkays took over the firm following Amos' disbarment in 1991 following his conviction on charges of bankruptcy fraud.