SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. (WESH) – A Florida man stands accused of posing as a nurse for a second time after the relative of one of his patients recognized him from a news story about the first arrest. That relative happens to be a Lake Mary police sergeant.
Joseph Kinney, 56, faced a Seminole County judge this week on a charge of unlicensed practice of a health care profession.
Lake Mary Police say Kinney worked as a registered nurse at Aviata at Lake Mary, a rehab and nursing facility, for nearly two months last summer.
Investigators say his license was revoked in 2022.
Kinney was said to be working under someone else’s name and license.
“We’re always concerned when this happens because we feel like it’s sort of a stain on the profession,” said Willa Hill, executive director of the Florida Nurses Association.
According to a case document, a Lake Mary police sergeant recognized Kinney from a news story about his arrest in Volusia County last year. She realized Kinney allegedly had been the nurse caring for her relative at the Lake Mary facility.
While Lake Mary Police Department’s investigation wrapped up in October 2025, the state attorney’s office in Seminole County didn’t issue a warrant until January 2026.
Kinney was picked up July 1 in Daytona Beach on the warrant and brought to Seminole County this week.
This new arrest comes just days after court records show Kinney resolved his Volusia County cases.
He was accused last September of applying for nursing jobs using another person’s identification and license, and was hired at facilities in Seminole and Orange counties.
Last month, he was placed on five years of probation with conditions including that he not work in healthcare.
“Definitely, we need to make sure and pay attention to this because it is a public safety issue,” said Hill.
Kinney has bonded out of jail and is due back in court in August.
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