Hernando County is the home of Spring Hill, Florida and Brooksville, Florida. Hernando County has a population of 176,819 people. Brookesville holds the county seat. People visiting often enjoy Fort Desoto, and Hernando Beach. Hernando County holds the City of Mermaids inside Weeki Wachi. Hernando County is included in the Tampa area.
Several highways and interstates go through the county, including US Highway 41, Highway 19, Interstate 75 among others. Within the county there are the following arresting agencies: Hernando County Police Department, Brooksville Police Department and Florida Highway Patrol.
Hernando County Judges
| Hernando County Judges: | Jurisdiction |
| Judge Kurt Hitzemann | ½ Misdemeanors |
| Judge Kristie M. Ruppe | ½ Misdemeanors |
5th Circuit Judges in Hernando County
| 5th Circuit Hernando County Judges: | Jurisdiction |
| Judge Daniel B. Merritt Jr | ½ Felonies |
| Judge Stephen E. Toner | ½ Felonies |
In Hernando County Courts and the Circuit Court judges receive a random distribution of cases therefore you will not know your judge until your case is assigned to a specific judge. Once a judge is assigned, the same judge will remain on the case from start to finish.
Common Crimes in Hernando County, FL
Below is a list of the most common crimes people were arrested for in Hernando County, in 2015. These statistics were received from the Uniform Crime Report provided by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
| Offenses: | Total Arrests: |
| Drugs | 804 |
| Larceny | 1100 |
| Simple Assault | 831 |
Hernando County Police Department made the majority of the arrests for drugs, larceny and simple assault.
In between 2014 and 2015 there was a population increase in Hernando County but with that increase in population came an increase in arrests. The majority of arrests in the county were made by Hernando County Police Department and Brooksville Police Department.
Specialty Programs
Veterans Treatment Court
Veterans Treatment Court is for Veterans with possible mental health or drug abuse issues. Veterans Court is a Court-supervised program for those arrested in Hernando County who have a mental illness, substance abuse, or other mental health condition related to their military service, who need treatment and other services, and who choose to participate in the Hernando County Veterans Treatment Court instead of having their case precede through the regular court process.. This is a diversion program with different possible outcomes for each case. Veterans court accepts both misdemeanor defendants and felony defendants.
Adult Drug Court
Hernando County Court Administration provides the Adult Drug Court program under the leadership and supervision of Circuit Judge Richard Tombrink, Jr. The Hernando County Adult Drug Court Program is a court supervised intensive and highly structured program consisting of both comprehensive out-patient treatment and case management supervision for non-violent offenders. The program includes, but is not limited to, regular court appearances, random drug screens, group/individual substance abuse counseling and frequent Substance Abuse Peer Support Group meeting attendance. The length of this four-phase program is normally 15 to 24 months. In general, if a defendant has a violent criminal past they will not be accepted into the program. As always, there are exceptions to this rule such as aggravated assault, with special permission from the State Attorney. Felonies related to drugs are an acceptable entrance in the drug court and non-violent offenders are encouraged to enter drug court.
Mental Health Court
We’re here to serve you. Our phones are open 24 hours a day. The Hernando County Mental Health Court is a special part of the Hernando County Court. It is a Court-supervised program for those arrested in Hernando County who has a mental illness, who need treatment and other services, and who choose to participate in the mental health program instead of having their case precede through the regular court process. The goal of this program is to divert non-violent defendants with mental illness from the Hernando County Jail and active criminal prosecution in the Hernando County Court to appropriate community based treatment.
