JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – About one week after placing a city employee on leave for a policy violation, the City of Jacksonville said they can resume their duties.
Last Thursday, Yanira “Yaya” Cardona, the city’s Hispanic Outreach Coordinator, was placed on administrative leave after posting a video to Instagram talking about recent reports of increased presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents across the area.
In a statement, the mayor’s office said that its review of the matter has concluded, adding that it does not elaborate on internal personnel matters.
The full statement can be read below.
The administrative review related to Ms. Yanira “Yaya” Cardona has concluded, and she has resumed her duties as Hispanic Outreach Coordinator in accordance with applicable policies and procedures.
As practice, the City of Jacksonville does not elaborate on internal personnel matters. We remain committed to serving all residents of Jacksonville with professionalism, transparency, and respect.
Office of Mayor Donna Deegan
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Jacksonville protestors bash ICE operations, demand city employee who posted controversial video be reinstated | Deegan says employee was placed on leave for policy violation, not for discussing reported increased ICE presence
In the social media video that was posted last week, Cardona can be heard asking families to have a plan in case they get arrested and to “stay home” if there’s no need to go outside.
“If you get pulled over, as much as we want to huff and puff, please comply,” Cardona said in the video.
Later in the day, Mayor Donna Deegan addressed the situation, stating that she was clearing up misinformation caused by an “unfortunate distraction” that forced her to step away from working for the Jacksonville community.
Deegan made it clear that she disagreed with Cardona’s actions while emphasizing that she did not have an issue with the content in the video.
“Nothing that she shared said anything about anyone who is here illegally. It was simply giving the community information that was freely available, and also giving information about their legal rights,” Deegan said.
“There was nothing she said that was illegal,” she continued, stating that Cardona’s comments came from a place of “compassion.”
Deegan also confirmed that Cardona was in her office and working when she made the controversial video.
“The reason she was put on administrative leave because we have a policy in the city. We have a mayor who is the spokesperson for the city, and we have people who follow policy that if you are going to create any social media content. [...] that can be misconstrued as coming from the mayor, that has to come through me or our communications office,” Deegan said.
At the time, Deegan said her office had not determined when Cardona’s administrative leave would end.
Cardona’s remarks have also drawn attention from state officials, such as Attorney General James Uthmeier, who took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to condemn the comments made in the video.
Great, this is illegal and needs to be seriously addressed! https://t.co/jtTC67rmJJ
— James Uthmeier (@JamesUthmeierFL) January 15, 2026
It also drew the attention of Gov. Ron DeSantis, who said that Cardona’s actions were not indicative of “the way we roll in Florida.”
“You had that one woman in the City of Jacksonville’s government...that’s not the way we roll in Florida, we’re going to respect law enforcement... and if you want an open border or an amnesty, I wouldn’t support that, but there’s a process,” the governor said.
This week, conversations about the presence of ICE in Northeast Florida have ramped up after dozens of community members, especially in the Hispanic community, have reported a notable increase in immigration-related arrests.
On Wednesday evening, immigration attorney Andrea Reyes held a livestream via Facebook to address the recent reported ICE raids that have taken place across the area and to inform people about their rights.
“I am hosting this livestream on behalf of those who have been detained, those who are still detained, and for our people who are living with so much fear,” Reyes said in Spanish as she struggled to hold back the tears. “I want us to be aware that this is not going to change overnight, with $170 billion... things are only going to get worse.”
The Jacksonville Immigrant Rights Alliance sent out a statement denouncing the surge in ICE sightings and calling for the community to come together.