Crossfire continues in Jacksonville gun registry war, with 2 most recent Mayors in a standoff

The Mayor Donna Deegan administration is producing documents claiming that predecessor Lenny Curry was responsible for an “illegal gun registry” at Jacksonville City buildings.

However, Curry frames the issue differently, saying unequivocally that the registry was a creation of the current Mayor’s Office and that ongoing legal investigations will make that clear.

The documents in question are a “Check Points and Perimeter Security” memo from Facility Manager Mike Soto that was drafted June 30, 2023, and finalized July 24, 2023.

June 30, a Friday, was the final day of the Curry administration. Deegan was sworn in the next day.

“At a minimum, record the name, state issued photo ID unique identification number, age, (and) weapon type in the WEAPON AND FIREARM LOGBOOK,” the document and its subsequent revision dictates.

The Deegan administration presents the document as exoneration.

“The June 30, 2023 final draft clearly shows that the policy was created and written in the waning days of the Curry Administration. As it was previously noted at the Rules Committee meeting, the Deegan Administration was not made aware of the policy until April 21, 2025. The policy is no longer in place, and we are currently reviewing all policy directives across departments to ensure compliance with state law,” said spokesperson Phil Perry.

“We’d appreciate that this is accurately reflected in reporting without the false narrative that the current Mayor’s Office is behind it.”

Questions still remain about the ultimate responsibility for the policy.

In the waning hours of the Curry administration, the Deegan transition team would have had access to staffers like Soto. They started work a month before.

The finalization on July 24, meanwhile, was after the current Mayor had been in office for three full weeks, raising questions as to why Deegan’s team wasn’t aware of the illegal policy that it claims to have inherited, but didn’t discontinue until April 2025.

Curry rejects responsibility for the directive.

“This is Donna Deegan’s gun registry, not Lenny Curry’s,” he said Wednesday afternoon, blasting her attempt to “change the narrative” by casting blame on his administration “with nuanced language and dumping the memo.”

“Saying it was me is a lie. It’s not illegal to lie to media, but it’s illegal to lie under oath. Her team has been subpoenaed. Lenny Curry and his team hasn’t,” Curry added, saying the registry “unequivocally” was not his.

More revelations are forthcoming.

The 4th Circuit State Attorney is subpoenaing various City Hall employees, including Soto, Roy Birbal, former public safety chief Lakeisha Burton, Chief Administrative Officer Karen Bowling, Steven Long, Pat McCollough, Kelli O’Leary, former acting General Counsel Bob Rhodes, and former city lawyer and current City Council lawyer Jason Teal.

Deegan is not currently the target of a subpoena.

State Attorney Melissa Nelson has asked Jacksonville City Council Republicans to hold their fire regarding an internal City Council investigation into alleged violations of Florida Statutes 790.335, which bans registries under threat of criminal and civil penalties.