John Hill is a Times editorial writer based in Tampa. Born near Chicago and raised in Tampa, he worked previously for the Lakeland Ledger, where he covered local government, and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, where he wrote computer-assisted special projects. He has freelanced for newsweeklies and magazines and is currently completing a nonfiction biography of former Florida sheriff Willis V. McCall. Hill, who joined the Times in 1996, writes primarily about Hillsborough County. He lives in Tampa with his wife, Sue.

Phone: (813) 226-3379

E-mail: hill@sptimes.com