LOOMIS, Calif. — Two Placer County school districts say they found no evidence of wrongdoing by a pastor or his LGBTQ+ youth group months after they were a controversial topic.
Pastor Casey Tinnin, of Loomis Basin Congregational United Church of Christ, founded and leads the Landing Spot, whose website describes it as “a non-religious support group for LGBTQIA+ youth and their parents in Placer County.”
“There are very few places where Queer kids in this community have the ability to just be with other kids like themselves and to just be in a space that is safe and supportive,” Tinnin told ABC10.
For several years now, the Landing Spot has operated as a student group in the community and at a number of Placer County high schools.
Back in March, Tinnin came under fire when he became the target of a hit piece by Project Veritas, which considers itself a journalism organization. Critics call it a far-right activist group.
Tinnin is shown in an undercover video taken without his permission or knowledge. He says he was lead to believe he was speaking with parents of trans kids who were seeking his advice
The piece is called "California Reverend Says it is 'Critical' to Discuss Sexual Identity and Gender with Children at a Young Age; Admits Parents Would 'Be Upset' if They Knew 'Their Queer Kid was Coming to Me'... ‘I and the Older Queer Folks are Mentoring These Young Adults.’”
Some of the allegations, supporters of the Landing Spot say, amount to Pastor Tinnin creating a safe space for teens — especially those whose families don't accept or like that they are Queer.
After the video hit the internet, critics and supporters spoke out at this Roseville Joint Union High School District (RJUHSD) School Board Meeting.
"The solution is not putting a wedge between parents and children. Having children lie and attend secret meetings is not the answer,” one woman said during the meeting.
Defending Pastor Tinnin, Alicia Watkins, who attended the meeting and knows Tinnin, says Project Veritas “made a very good man seem like a very bad man.”
At that same time, two other districts — Western Placer Unified School District and Placer Union High School District — announced they were launching investigations into the Landing Spot and Pastor Casey.
Now, those investigations have wrapped up.
At the June 20 school board meeting, Placer Union's then-outgoing superintendent George Sziraki told the board the district’s investigation found no wrongdoing on the part of Tinnin or the Landing Spot.
"After a full investigation, we have not had a parent, we haven't had a student come forward to say anything, [that] any harm has come to students,” said Sziraki. “The landing spot will have access if our students request it, like they had done before — after school, in clubs, supervised."
Western Placer released a 30-page report Thursday detailing the third-party investigation and how they, too, found no wrongdoing.
“All of the criticism and commentary about Pastor Tinnin and The Landing Spot we received and read is based upon ideological differences and beliefs about the LGBTQIA+ community in general, and about a school’s role in the LGBTQIA+ community in particular, and not any personal knowledge about wrongdoing by Pastor Tinnin towards students or against parents,” the report said. “The only reports we had from those students and parents with personal knowledge of Pastor Tinnin and The Landing Spot – i.e., they attended the monthly meetings and otherwise interacted with Pastor Tinnin – praised his efforts and conduct.”
The full report is available HERE.
"My hope is, now that we have heard from two districts - that there is no 'there there,' we can move beyond this," Tinnin said on Friday, when ABC10 spoke with him and church council co-president Sara Bocciardi to get their reaction. “Our intent is to bind the wounds to heal and move forward. Because Placer County needs it.”
Tinnin added that he appreciates the gravity with which the districts conducted their investigations.
“I'm thankful for districts that took their job seriously in keeping young people safe. I just want to reiterate the importance of them saying there was no issue from parents or students who had any experience with the Landing Spot,” said Tinnin. “Any discontent that was made known came from people who've never engaged in our work — mostly adults. I think that says a lot to the credibility of our work, the life-saving work that we do in Placer County and that we will continue to do.”
As for Roseville Joint Union High School District, the other district involved in this story, board president Pete Constant told ABC10 Friday, “RJUHSD has not initiated an investigation that I am aware of. The Landing Spot was not working on any of our campuses at the time the video in question was released.”
In a statement sent to parents after the release of the Project Veritas piece, RJUHSD said, “Given statements by Pastor Tinnins in the video, along with other related concerns, RJUHSD staff has contacted the Roseville Police Department and Child Protective Services to advise them of the matter so they can ensure no students have been harmed.”
A finding in the Western Placer Unified School District investigation report addressed the results of this, saying, “The Roseville Police Department and the Lincoln Police Department confirmed, as of May 2023, they have not initiated any investigations, nor are there any active or inactive investigations, into The Landing Spot or Pastor Tinnin. Additionally, a RJUHSD representative contacted the Placer County CPS Department regarding The Landing Spot and Pastor Tinnin, and reported that CPS ‘would not take a report for this issue.’”
Bocciardi said Loomis Basin Congregational UCC had Tinnin’s back this whole time.
“Our goal throughout this entire process has been to support him and to support the Landing Spot, knowing that these allegations were empty,” said Bocciardi. “We're really glad that the report has proven what we knew all along - which is that Pastor Casey is an amazing and supportive individual, and we're so happy to have him as our pastor.”
The relief for Tinnin, the Landing Spot and Loomis Basin Congregational UCC encompasses more than just the end of the Project Veritas debacle.
Earlier this year, the Landing Spot planned on raising money for its summer camp for Queer teens by holding a family-friendly youth drag show, as it had twice before. But the concerns of a vocal group of community members cast the drag show and youth group in a controversial light. For safety reasons, the Landing Spot decided to cancel the fundraiser back in March.
Tinnin says, due in part to the national spotlight from the Project Veritas hit piece, some $30,000 in donations came in for the Landing Spot and their summer camp, which just wrapped up. It’s called Camp Fruit Loop, it’s the camp’s second year and it served some 40 students – double last year’s number.
“It was really amazing to see our Queer youth have an opportunity to be in a space where every other member of the camp was another Queer youth, where they were the majority, where they didn't have to fight for their pronouns to be recognized, where they didn't have to fight for their chosen names to be used in for them,” said Bocciardi.
Tinnin said a camp specifically for LGBTQIA+ youth is important because “many of our LGBT youth — they grew up, you know, whether it be Boy Scouts camp or church camp and because they are now queer, they don't feel safe in those spaces. And they wanted that experience.”
