Hill, a Parramore native first elected to represent her home neighborhood and other parts of west Orlando in 2013, has pleaded not guilty to the seven felony charges she faces. The 58-year-old city commissioner was reportedly bailed out of Orange County Jail Thursday afternoon, on a $40,000 bond. If convicted of all charges, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement states that Hill could face up to 180 years in prison.
Hill has been accused of exploiting a 96-year-old constituent and defrauding the elderly woman by spending over $100,000 of the elderly woman’s money for Hill's own personal benefit, including personal purchases such as vacations, home renovations, a facelift, and expensive perfume. (We are not naming the alleged victim for privacy reasons.)
The FDLE, which has been investigating Hill’s alleged mistreatment for over a year, also said that Hill fraudulently obtained a second power of attorney to buy a home worth more than $400,0000 with the elderly victim as the co-signer. This was allegedly done without the victim’s knowledge or consent. Hill has also reportedly been living with her son and his girlfriend in one of the victim’s vacant homes.
Hill has been accused of manipulating the woman by securing power of attorney over her shortly after they first met in 2021. The victim is described in court filings as having a cognitive disability and age-related infirmities.
Reportedly, the two met after code enforcement informed Hill of dilapidated conditions of the victim’s home. A circuit judge in Orange County issued a temporary protective injunction, cutting off Hill’s access to the victim’s money and all contact with the victim, earlier this month.
Hill has denied the allegations of mistreatment, which come from Tampa-based woman Adriane Alexander. According to court filings by the victim, Alexander is the daughter of a lifelong friend of the victim’s and has known the victim all of her life. Alexander displaced Hill and secured power of attorney over the elderly victim in February.
Hill has specifically been indicted by grand jurors of Orange County on seven charges: three counts of exploitation of an elderly person in excess of $50,000; one count of a scheme to defraud $50,000 or more; two counts of personal identification fraud; and one count of mortgage fraud exceeding $100,000.
The FDLE has reportedly declined to comment on any allegation of abuse of office, as the agency was strictly investigating Hill as a private citizen, according to The Daily Beast. A city spokesperson told Orlando Weekly in a statement that the city is aware of Hill's arrest and the charges levied against her, but said the city does not have the authority to discipline an elected official "as that power lies with the Governor."
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis does indeed have the authority to suspend local elected officials (as when he suspended state attorney general Monique Worrell), and told reporters on Wednesday that if a grand jury did indict a municipal elected official, he “would suspend.”
The city spokesperson confirmed that, pursuant to the city's charter, the city would be prepared to conduct a special election to temporarily fill Hill's District 5 seat, if Hill is indeed suspended. The city did not respond to our request for comment on how long they have been aware of the FDLE investigation into Hill.
Hill is no stranger to legal troubles, nor life challenges. She has a decades-long history of arrest records dating back to the 1980's, ranging from DUIs to an arrest in Alabama last year for misdemeanor public intoxication and disorderly conduct charges that were later dropped. She's also faced significant challenges, from suffering the loss of her 24-year-old daughter Arvonni in 2015, to the the loss of a niece in 2021, who was killed at a local gas station.
Subscribe to Orlando Weekly newsletters.
Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | or sign up for our RSS Feed
