S. Hugh Dillin, 91; Indiana Judge Oversaw Schools Desegregation

S. Hugh Dillin, 91, who during four decades as a federal judge oversaw the desegregation of schools in Indianapolis, died Monday in Cambridge, Mass. The cause of death was not announced.

In 1971, Dillin ordered the Indianapolis Public Schools to accelerate desegregation of its staff and some schools. Two years later, he ordered the busing of pupils within Indianapolis Public School boundaries to schools in surrounding townships. That busing continued until Dillin approved an agreement in 1998 to phase out the busing of students to suburban schools.

A native of Petersburg, Ind., Dillin earned his bachelor’s and law degrees at Indiana University. He was admitted to the Indiana bar in 1938. He won election as a state representative at age 22, ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1956, and by 1961 had risen to president pro tem of the Indiana Senate. He was appointed to a newly created third judgeship for the Southern District of Indiana by President Kennedy in 1961.

In court, Dillin encouraged brevity and was known for admonishing long-winded lawyers to “cut out the windup, just give me the pitch.”