Florida corrections officer accused of using bogus handicap permit at Publix
Juania Lilly (Photo: Polk County Sheriffs Office)
HIGHLANDS CITY, Fla. - A Florida Department of Corrections officer was arrested Thursday after she was caught using a fraudulent handicap permit at Publix, according to the Polk County Sheriff's Office.
On Thursday morning, a Polk County service officer was on parking patrol at the Publix in Highlands City when he came across a car parked in a handicap spot. The officer asked Juania Lilly if the placard was hers, and she said it belonged to her mother, according to deputies.
"The (officer) ran the placard number, and the information came back to a person who is not Lilly’s mother," the sheriff's office said. "The owner of the placard stated she had lost it in April of 2023."
Deputies also said the placard was expired, but the date was altered "to make it look valid."
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A deputy responded to the Publix and spoke with Lilly, who said she obtained the placard when someone left it in her Lyft vehicle. Lilly works as a part-time Lyft driver in addition to working at the Polk Correctional Institute, according to the sheriff's office.
Furthermore, Lilly then denied that she ever told the service officer the placard belonged to her mother, deputies said.
Lilly was arrested and charged with the following, according to the Polk County Sheriff's Office:
- Unlawful display of a disabled parking permit
- Unlawfully altering a motor vehicle registration
- Failure to deliver lost property
- False information to a law enforcement officer during a felony investigation
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Sheriff Grady Judd issued the following statement:
"It’s very disappointing when a public servant not only refuses to cooperate with a law enforcement investigation, but outright lies. She also committed a felony when she decided to alter and use someone else’s handicapped placard. Now she’s going to be held accountable for her crimes."
The Florida Department of Corrections has been alerted about Lilly's arrest.