Deputy mayor nominee Lina Hill outlines public health and safety priorities; committee forwards nomination to full council

The Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee heard from Lina Hill, the mayor’s nominee for deputy mayor of public health and safety, and voted to forward the nomination to the full City-County Council with a do-pass recommendation.

Lina Hill opened by saying, “I stand before you today, deeply honored,” and outlined a six-month orientation that included meeting internal and external partners, stabilizing staff transitions and beginning hiring for a permanent Office of Public Health and Safety (OPHS) director. She said the office would emphasize anti‑violence strategies, anti‑poverty initiatives, eviction and homelessness prevention, reentry services, food access and expanded behavioral-health and clinician-led response teams. Hill said the city is operationalizing a gun-violence reduction strategy and that city funding through the Elevation program will direct $3,000,000 toward intervention and justice‑involved support programs with a focus on males ages 18–35.

Hill described program metrics that will be tracked and made public through a forthcoming dashboard and offered regular updates and a committee open house. She asked for council support and said the office would seek “data driven” performance meetings and monthly reporting on referrals, enrollments and violence interrupter activity.

Several councilors and members of the public raised concerns during and after Hill’s presentation. Councilor Skerry asked about where people experiencing homelessness are placed and how eviction prevention programs operate; Hill responded that the office coordinates with partners such as Horizon House and has a tenant- and homelessness-prevention focus. Councilor Boots and others emphasized embedding eviction prevention in the budget.

During public comment Carla Duffy, chief financial officer of the Office of Public Health and Safety, stated she had filed a claim against Hill alleging harassment and said she did not believe Hill was qualified for the position. Duffy told the committee she had filed the claim in September and expressed frustration about events since Hill’s start in August. Committee members noted any formal HR matters would be handled through personnel and legal processes and are beyond committee deliberations.

Councilor McCormick asked about OPHS leadership hiring; Hill said the office completed two interview rounds and had “three strong final candidates” and hoped to make an offer within weeks. On a motion and roll-call vote, the committee forwarded the nomination to the full council with a do-pass recommendation; the committee recorded a 9–0 tally in favor with one councilor recorded as opposing on the clerk’s roll call but the final reported tally was 9–0 in committee. Chair Leroy Robinson asked Hill to return for an update in May and for bimonthly reporting to the committee.

Ending: The committee action sends the nomination to full council for final confirmation; several councilors requested written dashboards, more data and regular updates on OPHS programs and hiring.