According to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office, “In the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, MD, the Honorable Robert Greenberg sentenced defendant, Rome Hill, 32, of Silver Spring, to life in prison suspend all but 30 years to serve and five years of supervised probation. Hill was convicted by a jury on October 19th, 2023, on charges of First-Degree Rape, Use of a Firearm in Commission of a Felony and Unlawful Possession of a Loaded Handgun. The sentencing hearing was held this Tuesday, November 7th, 2023. Upon release, conditions of probation will include registration as a Tier III sex offender for life and no contact with the victim.
On September 9th, 2020, the defendant sent a friend request and private social media message to the victim who was a stranger to him. They messaged and spoke over the phone for two days. On September 11th, the victim felt comfortable enough to meet Hill in person and invited him to her apartment. That evening, Hill produced a handgun and raped the victim. Assistant State’s Attorneys Frank Lazzaro and Christina Ferris prosecuted this matter.”
“We thank the victim for her brave testimony during court proceedings, helping to ensure this defendant will not be able to victimize anyone else,” said State’s Attorney John McCarthy.
“We would like to remind the public about best practices while dating online. When setting up face-to-face interactions, please meet in a public setting with others around and let a friend or family member know where you are going to be. Maryland Case Search is also a free and publicly available tool to check for criminal history information,” said McCarthy.