BOTETOURT COUNTY, Va. – A member of the Botetourt County Board of Supervisors is fighting for votes and fighting against criminal charges.
It’s over an alleged incident involving a critic who held a sign the board member felt was inappropriate.
“This whole thing is politically motivated,” Botetourt County Board of Supervisor Billy Martin said after a confrontation involving a citizen, Danny Goad.
Martin said the altercation got out of hand.
Goad held a sign criticizing Martin last Wednesday along a highly traveled road in Cloverdale that reads, “Martin allows Porn for Children in Libraries.”
Martin says the sign is politically motivated to get him out of office, and he is seeking re-election for the board.
“I’ve been avoiding any kind of confrontation, and I had been avoiding it for some time, but when I saw this, it was over the top,” Martin said.
“This is not political, Billy Martin allows porn in libraries,” Danny Goad, a Botetourt County resident said.
Martin’s a Sunday School teacher and has been charged with assault and battery, after confronting Goad.
“I was just thinking, ‘If some of these parents saw this, what would be on their minds?’ They probably won’t come back to church, I’ve got sense enough not to assault, not to hit him or batter him,” Martin said.
Goad feels Botetourt County Board of Supervisors can do more to remove the book titled, “The Every Body Book: The LGBTQ+ Inclusive Guide for Kids about Sex, Gender, Bodies, and Families.”
“I know many emails have been sent, they should have seen all the materials because it’s all been sent to them, they have had many opportunities and still they refuse to do anything,” Goad said.
However, Martin disagrees.
“We don’t have the authority to start and taking books out,” Martin said.
Martin said, to have a book reviewed, the person needs to request a meeting with the library board.
While Martin awaits time in court in July, he wishes he would have done things differently.
“I probably shouldn’t have approached him like I did to get the sign,” Martin said.