NYPD officers responded to a 911 call Thursday afternoon in South Jamaica, Queens, and found 81-year-old Lillie Hill unconscious inside her home on 146th Street, between Sutter Avenue and Rockaway Boulevard. She was rushed to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Patricia Williams, 46, was arrested and charged with manslaughter in connection with her death.
Officers arrived at the scene around 3:30 p.m., according to the New York Post, which reported the case. Hill's home sits just a few blocks from John F. Kennedy Airport, in a residential stretch of South Jamaica. The circumstances surrounding her death were not immediately known, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Patricia Williams Charged With Manslaughter
Patricia Williams, 46, was arrested and charged with manslaughter in connection with Hill’s death. It remains unclear what relationship, if any, Williams had to Hill. The NYPD is continuing to investigate.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will determine Hill's cause of death, per the same report. That determination could take time given the broader strain on the city's medical examiner system, which has faced a wave of staffing departures in recent years.
Queens Autopsy Office Strained by Staffing Shortage
New York City has stopped conducting autopsies at its medical examiner's office in Queens, consolidating that work in Brooklyn and Manhattan, according to Gothamist. The Queens facility is still being used to store bodies, help families handle necessary business, and serve as a hub for the city's burial operation, the outlet reports.
Gothamist reported in November 2024 that the city had 18 medical examiners on staff, a little more than half the number it had in 2021, and that three more were expected to retire or quit by the end of 2024. The median turnaround time for autopsy reports had stretched beyond four months during part of fiscal year 2024 before declining to 91 days by the end of June, the outlet notes.
It is not known whether Hill's case will be affected by the consolidation of autopsy services away from Queens. For now, police say the investigation into her death continues, with the medical examiner's office expected to establish the cause once its review is complete.
