Pastor Ronnie Goines (via Facebook)
An anti-LGBT pastor who once asked Arlington’s mayor to ban Pride Month displays in the city because they “don’t align with family and faith values of the majority of parents in Arlington and are actually designed to influence children into that lifestyle” has been arrested for sexual assault.
Pastor Ronnie Goines turned himself in to Arlington police last week after warrants were issued against him for indecent assault and sexual assault. He is the founder and head pastor of Koinonia Christian Church in Arlington.
In a 2022 email to Arlington Mayor Jim Ross signed by 10 pastors including Goines, they wrote, “To be clear, we are not interested in creating a public spectacle, nor are we interested in standing against the LGBTQIA+ community … Our aim in this requested conversation is to guard our community against sexually explicit and suggestive literature that is openly displayed in our public libraries directed toward the children/teens of this city.”
The Arlington Library was not putting sexually explicit material on display for children or teens. But Goines is being held on $23,000 bond.
— David Taffet