March 23, 2010, marked the day a new “homophobic hatred” law came into effect in England and Wales. The law has a free speech shield but could carry a sentence of up to seven years of imprisonment for those who “incite hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation.”

Shawn Holes was preaching to a crowd in Glasgow, Scotland, when same-sex couples asked the American evangelist what he thought about homosexuality. It wasn’t the first time the question had come up; in fact, he hears it asked frequently.

Holes said he answered, “Your homosexuality is the least of your problems. Your problem is your heart.” He added that homosexuality is a sin deserving of hell but that all sinners, including himself, deserve God’s wrath but are offered salvation. Afterward, police officers arrested Holes and took him to jail—a surprise since he said his fellow preachers had just hours earlier asked an officer if it was acceptable to preach freely and to answer questions about homosexuality. The officer had told them yes.

Although the police were courteous, Holes spent the night in a damp jail cell with only a thin covering and a mat for sleeping on the hard floor. The next day he pleaded guilty to breaching the peace by “uttering homophobic remarks” that were “aggravated by religious prejudice.” The court fined him £1,000 pounds (about $1,500)—the highest fine ever levied against a street evangelist, according to Christian Institute’s Simon Calvert on Christian Premier Radio.

Holes, who has returned to the United States, said his intention was to simply answer a question: “We don’t single out people because of their sexual preferences, but certainly when they start asking questions we want to make sure they know what the Bible says about what they’re doing and what they’re practicing.”

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