A Burlington woman who is accused of feigning the loss of her sight, voice and mobility as a ploy to defraud the public walked out of Milton court Friday free on bail.

Cindy Smith was released on her own recognizance under conditions that include not accessing the Internet and following programs from the John Howard Society and the Canadian Mental Health Association.

Her release comes a day after being charged with fraud over $5,000 in connection with an online fundraising campaign to cover medical expenses for chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP), a rare neurological disease police say she does not have.

Justice of the Peace Paul MacPhail's reasons for granting bail and evidence presented during the hearing cannot be shared because of a standard bail hearing publication ban.

Wearing a green, jail-issued tracksuit, Smith walked unassisted into court, looked around the room and clearly said her name when asked.

Partway into the hearing she said she wasn't feeling well and as court officers were walking her back into the holding area, she collapsed onto the courtroom floor. She appeared to be conscious as the courtroom was ordered cleared. Paramedics were called and brought a stretcher, but left without Smith and the hearing soon continued.

Outside of court, Smith's lawyer, Mark Hogan, called the case a "complicated matter."

He declined to comment on any details, or answer any questions about his client. "We're not going to be discussing this case in the media," he said. "We ask the media and the public to respect the process and to reserve judgment until all of these issues in this matter have been dealt with in a court of law."

Smith said nothing as Hogan walked her to his car and drove her home.

Friends and family had been led to believe Smith suffered from a rapid onset of CIDP since October, after being diagnosed three years ago. Police say medical records show none of this was true.

In interviews with The Spectator in March to promote the fundraising campaign, supporters said Smith's experimental medication cost $7,100 a week and they hoped to fly her to the United States for a stem cell surgery at some point.

A GoFundMe account, shut down in the wake of the charges, raised more than $100,000 and had a goal of $1.6 million.

Police say they believe Smith acted alone and fraud detectives do not expect to lay any additional charges.

There were no supporters in the courtroom.

As part of her release, Smith was also ordered not to contact Hilary Keeves — a woman who in March described herself to The Spectator as Smith's best friend. They met 14 years ago and Keeves was the named administrator on the GoFundMe account.

She has not responded to requests for comment.

At the downtown Burlington co-op where Smith has lived for more than a decade — and where she was ordered to continue living — residents expressed shock and anger at the allegations.

Neighbour Gord McGrath said if true, it's "a betrayal … that hurt a lot of people here, especially people with major disabilities. Money is extremely, extremely tight for a lot of people here, you feel betrayed."

Smith lives in a second-floor unit of the 11-storey Stoa Co-op on Brock Street, a stone's throw from Burlington's lakefront. The housing co-operative has a high number of seniors and tenants with physical disabilities.

Several residents who did not wish to be named, said Smith was well-liked in the building, sociable, and with an easy sense of humour and ready smile.

"She was very outgoing, very personable and well-liked," McGrath said.

When pamphlets appeared last fall asking for help, tenants responded as best they could. Bottle drives were organized, with collection boxes at every garbage chute and posters reading, "Have a drink and save Cindy's life."

Smith promoted the crowdfunding website with a poster on her apartment door. Other signs began appearing in November, detailing her illnesses and warning people not to enter without wearing hospital gowns and masks to protect her.

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Medical equipment was stacked outside her door and police said they found more medical equipment and a motorized wheelchair inside her unit.

Tenants said some of the posters came off her door about two weeks ago and the bottle drive ceased without warning around the same time.

Smith returns to court May 27.