Latest news with #Carrico
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Jacksonville's OGC advises police to stop enforcing state and local laws criminalizing illegal entry
The City of Jacksonville's Office of General Counsel has advised the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office not to enforce state and local laws that make it a crime to be in the state and county without legal status in the country. In the new guidance, which was obtained by Action News Jax, city attorneys wrote a federal injunction on the state law 'would equally apply to the city's ordinance' because the city ordinance 'was modeled' after the state law. 'The reason we passed this bill, one of the main reasons, is it's a mandate from the President,' said Council Vice President Kevin Carrico (R-District 4), who sponsored the local immigration bill. Carrico initially requested OGC weigh in on whether the injections impacted JSO's ability to enforce state and local immigration laws. He questioned why OGC would advise against enforcing the local ordinance, given it's never been challenged in court. 'It's handcuffing law enforcement and it's going against the will of the state, the Governor, and ultimately the President of the United States,' said Carrico. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< While there is an active injunction against the state law, Florida's Attorney General James Uthmeier issued a letter to Florida's local law enforcement agencies in April, telling them, 'It is my view that no lawful, legitimate order currently impedes your agencies from continuing to enforce Florida's new illegal entry and reentry laws'. Mayor Donna Deegan refused to sign the local immigration bill over concerns it may be unconstitutional, and instead let it go into effect without her signature. 'The Mayor's Office is completely separate and has no authority over the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. The Office of General Counsel represents the entire Consolidated Government and has repeatedly raised concerns that the local ordinance is redundant to the state law that is now blocked by a federal court,' the mayor's office told Action News Jax when asked about the advice issued by OGC. 'This is simply legal guidance offered by the General Counsel to another independent entity to avoid lawsuits being filed against the city.' But Carrico argued the new guidance reflects OGC doing the bidding of the mayor. 'This is someone who always says we're doing things political and everything is so political. Look in the mirror,' said Carrico. 'This is very political.' Action News Jax reached out to JSO asking whether the agency plans to stop enforcing the state and local immigration laws as recommended by OGC. 'As a law enforcement agency, the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office will always enforce federal, state, and local laws,' said JSO in a statement. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Jacksonville City Council could soon have a lot more leverage over downtown projects
City Council members are looking to leverage more authority over the city's downtown development arm with a newly filed bill. The legislation would also strip away some of the mayor's ability to influence downtown development projects. After a year of meetings, Council Vice President Kevin Carrico (R-District 4) is looking to put into practice some of the fixes identified by the Special Committee on the Future of Downtown. 'We were tasked with coming up with a bill that would take care of some of these choke points and give a little more autonomy to the Downtown Investment Authority so they could get deals done,' said Carrico. Carrico is sponsoring a new bill that makes some changes to the Downtown Investment Authority. First, it allows DIA to file legislation directly through the Council President, sidestepping the Mayor's budget review process. Carrico estimated it will cut the time it takes to get deals approved by the council in half. 'So, the DIA can now come straight to the city council and take out a couple months' worth of pain points and timing,' said Carrico. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] The bill also requires DIA's CEO to be confirmed by the council and gives council and or the DIA Board the authority to remove the CEO with a majority vote. Currently, no one has the authority to fire the DIA CEO. With current CEO Lori Boyer set to retire soon, Carrico argued it will ensure council has a say in the selection of the next CEO and a means to hold them accountable. 'If we give that trust away and that trust is broken and things aren't going right, then the council has the ability to remove that person as well. Is that a likely scenario? Not at all, but it just gives us checks and balances in my opinion,' said Carrico. But the mayor's office is already taking issue with Carrico's proposal. 'Council does not have that authority now, which is by design to keep DIA out of politics,' the mayor's office told Action News Jax in a statement. 'Currently, the DIA board chooses the CEO. We don't believe it's wise to change that.' But Carrico argued with the mayor already having the ability to appoint all of the DIA board members, it's important for council to have a voice as well. 'So, this is really just dividing some of the power and authority over that because we all care about downtown,' said Carrico. With the bill being filed on an emergency basis, it should be ready for a final vote within four weeks. Carrico said he is hopeful it will be in place before the next DIA CEO is named. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] 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
15-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Tips to prevent insect-borne diseases and protect yourself
CLAY COUNTY, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — As the weather in the valley warms up more and more bugs are starting to come back out. These pesky insects can irritate and infect unsuspecting people and animals. Health officials WTWO/WAWV spoke with said these insects can do a lot more than just bug you, they are also capable of causing harm to your overall health by spreading dangerous diseases. 'The three of those biggest being Alpha-Gal, Lime Disease is really taking a large number climb up and then we're also seeing West Nile Virus later in the summertime but that could occur at any time,' said Carrico. To avoid these diseases, Carrico said prevention is key. 'Depending on what you're doing, it's kind of a know-before-you-go. What kind of area, what kind of activities are you going to be doing, on how best to prepare. If you are out and you're going to be hiking in any kind of wooded or grassy area, make sure you're preventing from ticks. If you're going to be out between dusk or dawn, that is the most active time for mosquitoes,' said Carrico. If you do end up getting bit by one of these insects, Health Educator at the Sullivan County Health Department, Rose Shepler said, to stay aware of the bite and monitor it for nearly a month. 'Definitely go see your primary care physician if you are experiencing symptoms. If you have a tick bite, you're going to want to monitor that for 30 days. If you have an unexplained rash or those flu-like symptoms you're going to want to see your primary care physician,' said Shepler. Shepler and Carrico both said to also monitor your kids as they start to run around and enjoy the fun outside. 'You want to watch your kids, just this past weekend I pulled a tick off my 6-year-old, so when you come in for the evening take a look, check everyone for ticks,' said Shepler. 'Making sure that you're checking when they come inside every single time. If you have pets in the yard, you are still going to want to check your kids even if they haven't been outside a lot because we don't want a hitchhiker to latch on,' said Carrico. Health officials also said the most common place to check for these insect bites are on the scalp, armpits and even between your toes as some ticks can be the size of the tip of a pencil. If you want to know what diseases are most common in your area, Carrico recommends going to the Indiana Department of Health's tick and mosquito dashboard. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
City Council prepares to take final vote on 'most robust' local immigration bill in the country
Jacksonville may soon have the toughest local laws aimed at combating illegal immigration in the country if the City Council approves legislation on Tuesday's agenda. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Council Vice President Kevin Carrico (R-District 4) argued his local immigration bill would make Jacksonville a national leader on the issue. 'This is gonna be the most robust illegal immigration legislation that's ever been passed by a local government in the country,' said Carrico. His bill would make it a local crime for a person to be in Duval County without legal status in the country, with penalties ranging from 30 to 60 days in jail depending on aggravating factors. It also allocates more than $76,000 for JSO to buy fingerprint scanners to check suspects' immigration status in the field and creates an obligation for city agencies and employees to comply with state and federal immigration enforcement efforts. 'It just strengthens the bill and makes sure that the signal is sent throughout the entire city government that what we're gonna do is enforce the laws that are on the books for this state, for this country all on illegal immigration,' said Carrico. Mayor Donna Deegan still has not said whether she'll sign the bill if it passes, but she has questioned whether its constitutional, as the federal government generally has jurisdiction over immigration issues. She's also suggested it seems redundant, given a new state law with even tougher penalties already makes it a crime to be in Florida without legal status. 'What I have heard is that there may be some amendments offered tonight. So, I don't know what those are, but I will need to see a final bill before I know how I feel about that bill,' said Deegan. Despite Florida's Attorney General recently threatening local officials in Fort Myers with removal from office after they voted against an immigration enforcement proposal, Mayor Deegan told Action News Jax that situation will have no impact on her final decision regarding the bill here in Jacksonville. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] 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
19-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Florida AG targets Fort Myers officials who voted against immigration agreement, could Jacksonville be next?
Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan has not yet said whether she plans to sign off on a proposed immigration bill moving through city hall when it more than likely makes it to her desk next week. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Now, a recent scrap between Florida's new Attorney General and the Fort Myers City Council is raising questions about whether Deegan could face repercussions if she were to veto the bill. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier issued this letter to Fort Myers City Council members after they rejected a proposal that would have increased the local police department's cooperation with ICE. In it, he suggested city leaders could face civil and criminal penalties, or even be removed from office. 'We're taking a firm stance,' said Jacksonville City Council Vice President Kevin Carrico (R-District 4). Carrico is sponsoring the local legislation that would make it illegal to be in Duval County without legal status and mandate city agencies cooperate with immigration officials. 'Illegal immigrants are committing crimes in this community every day, basically, if you look at the stats and there's a federal mandate by President Trump to crack down on illegal immigration,' said Carrico. The mayor has not yet announced whether she'll support it, but she has raised questions about whether it is redundant with state and federal laws. 'Mayor Deegan will look at the substance of the bill to make her decision,' a spokesperson for the mayor's office told Action News Jax Wednesday. If she were to veto the bill, it's unclear whether she could face similar threats like those facing officials in Fort Myers. Uthmeier's office declined to comment on the specific hypothetical when asked by Action News Jax, but the Attorney General did recently make a broad statement regarding local governments that 'obstruct' the state's mission to support federal immigration efforts. 'In Florida, we will not let local governments obstruct our mission to support the federal government in combatting illegal immigration,' Uthmeier wrote in a social media post. Carrico said he's not sure whether a veto could place the city or the mayor at risk, but he did encourage her to support it. 'To the mayor, I would say just don't play politics with this issue,' said Carrico. 'This is a real issue. This is a good bill. It helps protect the citizens. It helps enforce the federal mandates from President Trump.' The immigration bill is set to be taken up by the full council for a final vote on Tuesday night. The mayor has indicated she won't decide whether to support it or not until she sees the final product. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] 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.
