A write-in candidate for a seat on the Akron Public Schools board has been arrested on child enticement charges.
John David Goode Jr., 36, was charged Thursday with the misdemeanor offense, according to Akron police.
Police said Goode, who also works for the Akron-Summit County Public Library branch in Kenmore, was inside a dark minivan when he parked and tried to speak with a 13-year-old girl walking home.
The girl told police she had just left the library, about 5:30 p.m. Monday, and was heading home on Kenmore Boulevard near 13th Street Southwest when Goode struck up a conversation. He asked her name so he could find her on Facebook and told her they could be “secret friends,” police said.
The girl ran home and told her parents, police said. She told officers she recognized Goode from his job at the library.
A library spokeswoman said Goode is suspended pending the outcome of an internal investigation. He has worked part time for the library system as a shelver since 1999.
Goode is running for one of three open school board seats in the Nov. 8 election. He is a former University of Akron student body president and ran unsuccessfully for the Ward 3 seat on the Akron City Council in 2009.
Goode did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment.
Phil Trexler can be reached at 330-996-3717 or ptrexler@thebeaconjournal.com.