Jacksonville mayor: Small ‘credit card' knife found on 1 of 3 arrested during City Council meeting
Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan is speaking out after three people were arrested during Tuesday night's City Council meeting.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said Tuesday night that "Council leadership requested that JSO officers remove a group of individuals who were disrupting the proceedings."
Deegan said in a statement Wednesday that while public comment is a time to exercise free speech, 'the words we choose matter.'
The three who ended up being arrested, JSO said, 'refused to leave and resisted, becoming combative with officers. Officers discovered a knife on one of the individuals who was arrested.'
Here are the people who were arrested and the charges they are facing:
Conor Cauley, 29 - Facing charges of carrying a concealed weapon. Police said he was carrying a knife.
Leah Grady, 24 - Grady is facing charges of misdemeanor resisting an officer without violence.
Teagan Belloit, aka Dragon, 25 - Belloit is facing charges of misdemeanor resisting an officer without violence. She was released without bond.
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
In a statement, Deegan gave insight into the knife that Cauley was reportedly carrying, saying it was 'a small 'credit card' knife.'
Deegan said that there will be a 'full security review' of City Hall and that security guards will be trained to look for 'this style of concealed weapon.'
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
Here is Deegan's full statement on the arrests:
'We all have freedom of speech. The time to exercise that right is during the public comment period of City Council meetings. The words we choose matter. Civil discourse should be just that. Civil. If we truly want to solve problems, we have to find a way to speak respectfully to each other.
'A small 'credit card' knife went undetected in a wallet during the standard security screening process for last night's City Council meeting. Moving forward, we have directed First Coast Security to train their officers on this style of concealed weapon, and to conduct extra inspections of all personal items going into the Council Chambers.
'We are also conducting a full security review for City Hall – including potential equipment upgrades, staffing changes, and vendor options – as we get closer to the current security vendor contract expiring in September 2025.'
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
3 candidates for Downtown Investment Authority CEO coming to Jacksonville on Monday
Three finalists for the Downtown Investment Authority CEO job will be in Jacksonville on Monday for interviews. They are: Danny Chavez, former Chief Economic Development Officer in Waco, Texas. Lara Frittz, Division Director of the Frederick County, Maryland, Department of Economic Opportunity. Colin Tarbert, formerly the President and CEO of the Baltimore Development Corp. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] The new CEO will be replacing Lori Boyer, whose contract was extended last year. They will meet with Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan, Chief of Staff Mike Weinstein, incoming City Council President Kevin Carrico, and the DIA board. The City Council had been seeing power to fire the next CEO, but dropped the request after a high-profile dust-up between Carrico and Councilman Matt Carlucci. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Florida lawmakers looking to backtrack on cuts to Advanced Placement, IB and AICE courses
Bonus funds offered to school districts for students who pass advanced and career technical courses may no longer be at risk. Action News Jax State and Local Government Reporter Jake Stofan was first to highlight the revised proposal included in the Senate's latest K-12 budget offer. For months, students have been raising concerns about the legislature's plan to cut the awards in half and calling on lawmakers to maintain funding at current levels. Now, Senate K-12 Appropriations Chair Danny Burgess (R-Zephyrhills) has explained the bonus dollars will be fully funded. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Those dollars will however be split up, with districts permitted to spend 20 percent of the funds on discretionary spending, while 80 percent will go into a new categorical fund reserved for teacher bonuses, school bonuses and other district incentives. 'Basically, we are staying the course with how things are now, reverting from our original position during regular session and we're simply putting that money into a categorical that way we can just account for it more. But the same amount of money will be there,' said Burgess. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] House K-12 Budget Chair State Rep. Jenna Persons-Mulicka (R-Fort Myers) also spoke to reporters after Tuesday evening's budget conference meeting. She indicated the House is also considering a categorical option like the Senate, though the two sides still need to agree on a final plan. 'By creating a categorical, we have transparency. You know what that pot of money looks like, and then we're looking at making sure we allocate that in a way that equates to what would be allocated using the add-on weight method,' Persons-Mulika said. Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
New Dixon police chief sworn in Monday
Jun. 3—DIXON — Dixon's City Council chambers were filled to capacity Monday evening to applaud the swearing in of the city's new police chief, Ryan Bivins. "What an incredible night as we honor Ryan Bivins as he begins to lead our Dixon Police Department into this next chapter," Dixon City Manager Danny Langloss said. ExpandAutoplay Image 1 of 5 Dixon Mayor Glen Hughes (right) administers the oath of office for Dixon's new chief of police Ryan Bivins (left) at the Dixon City Council meeting Monday, June 2, 2025. (Payton Felix) Bivins' appointment as chief comes after former Chief Steve Howell's retirement May 9. Bivins was one of two candidates that went through the interview process conducted by a committee of 10 people and led by Jon Mandrell, vice president of academics and student services at Sauk Valley Community College and a former police officer. "It is with great pride and confidence that our committee recommends the appointment of Sgt. Ryan Bivins as the next chief of police for integrity, professionalism and dedication to community engagement make him exceptionally well suited to lead the department into the future," Mandrell wrote in a statement that Langloss read at the meeting. [ Dixon's new police chief plans to prioritize community policing, youth engagement ] Bivins joined the Dixon Police Department in 2009. He's served in many roles, including detective, street crimes sergeant, and hostage negotiator, among others. He also leads the department's Crisis Prevention Team and was instrumental in launching the Police Chaplain Program, Peer Support Program and First Responder Resiliency Program, according to a May 27 news release from the city of Dixon.
