Disgraced Gateway Church Founder Robert Morris has been indicted on five counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child, according to a press release by the Oklahoma Attorney General’s office.
The indictment stems from incidents that began around Christmas 1982, when Morris’ alleged victim was 12 years old, the release states. This matches the description of sexual abuse alleged last June by Oklahoma resident Cindy Clemishire.
Shortly after the allegations became public, Morris resigned from Gateway, one of the largest megachurches in the country.
In November, Gateway removed four elders who either knew about the allegations of abuse or knew enough that they should have investigated, the church stated.
“After almost 43 years, the law has finally caught up with Robert Morris for the horrific crimes he committed against me as a child,” Clemishire told The Roys Report (TRR) today.
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“Now, it is time for the legal system to hold him accountable. My family and I are deeply grateful to the authorities who have worked tirelessly to make this day possible and remain hopeful that justice will ultimately prevail.”
Previously, it was thought that criminal charges could not be brought because the statute of limitations had expired in this case. However, the statute of limitations “is not applicable in this case because Morris was not a resident or inhabitant of Oklahoma at any time,” the press release stated.
“There can be no tolerance for those who sexually prey on children,” said Attorney General Gentner Drummond. “This case is all the more despicable because the alleged perpetrator was a pastor who exploited his position. The victim in this case has waited far too many years for justice to be done.”
The Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office said the criminal behavior occurred when Morris was a traveling evangelist and would visit the family of the alleged victim in Hominy.
“He and his wife, Debbie, were family friends and often stayed in our home when he was preaching at my dad’s church,” Clemishire told TRR previously. She added that the abuse continued until she was 16 years old.
Morris was 21 to 25 years old at the time and a pastor of Shady Grove Church, which is now Gateway Church-Grand Prairie Campus.
Clemishire told TRR that the abuse escalated from inappropriate touching to rape by instrumentation.
Clemishire said she told her father about the abuse, who then told the lead pastor of Shady Grove Church “that if Morris didn’t get out of the ministry, he would report him to police.”
In a statement last June, Morris said he “confessed and repented of” his actions in 1987 and stepped down from his pastoral position.
Gateway initially stated that Morris had been “open and forthright about a moral failure when he was in his twenties.” Later, Gateway said it hadn’t realized Morris’ victim was only 12.
In a statement to the Dallas Morning News, Tra Willbanks, chair of Gateway’s elder board said he is grateful to the justice system for holding Morris accountable.
“We continue to pray for Cindy Clemishire and her family, for the members and staff of Gateway Church and for all those impacted by this terrible situation,” Willbanks said.
TRR has reached out to Morris multiple times but has not ever received a reply. We do not currently have contact information for Morris.
Attorney General Drummond represented Clemishire in 2007, when she sought a lawsuit against Morris.
An email Drummond sent to Morris in 2007 asked for reimbursement of thousands Clemishire spent in counseling “as a result of this abuse.” Clemishire told TRR that Morris’ attorney “attempted to blame me for the abuse.”
Since Morris’ resignation, tithes at Gateway have plummeted 35%-40%, and a number of top staff have resigned, including Morris’ son and daughter-in-law, James and Bridgette Morris.
The church also was sued for financial fraud. However, a court granted a motion this week to drop claims of fraud against former Gateway Executive Global Pastor Kevin Grove.
Julie Roys is a veteran investigative reporter and founder of The Roys Report. She also previously hosted a national talk show on the Moody Radio Network, called Up for Debate, and has worked as a TV reporter for a CBS affiliate. Her articles have appeared in numerous periodicals.
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45 Responses
What exactly is an indictment? does this just mean that he will now go to court and stand trial for this?
Yes, this means the Oklahoma AG has sufficient evidence to formally lay charges, which will result in a trial.
Jesus will not tolerate such corruption in his church forever. These guys have had years to do the right thing. Now the rent’s come due.
That was 43 years ago. Forty three years!! He most likely repented . You are very lucky God is not using that kind of standard ,otherwise no one would be saved.
This isn’t about salvation and the state of his soul. It’s about criminal sexual abuse of a minor. Something that results is being registered as a sex offender, and also unfit to serve in church leadership. It was not a pre-conversion life issue; he was already a married traveling evangelist when he did this. And it wasn’t a one-time slip-up, it was repeated and ongoing for 4 years. It was predatory.
He can repent and be forgiven regarding the eternal fate of his soul. He cannot be a church leader, as he does not meet the standards set forth in Scripture.
Joel,
Suggesting that passage of time and the forgiveness of God negate the responsibility for sexual abuse is a horrifying argument.
True repentance (questionable if it’s even happened here) makes you right with God. It does not save you from the consequences of your action. Repentance and time are not get-out-of-jail-free cards for sexually abusing children.
He very clearly hasn’t repented as he has done nothing to accept accountability for his actions. And society cannot function on the kind of grace that God gives, we do actually need to pursue justice against people who harm others.
If you commit a crime, the legal consequences are not waved away because you repented. A truly repentant person would accept the consequences without argument, if not turn themselves in in the first place.
The Bible says: Says you will reap what you sow! This is not about a tiny sin, it’s about a liar an defiling starting out of a 12 yr. olds body! An he continued for 4 yrs.? The Bible says: God does not over rule your will! The choice is ours. Morris has not paid for his judgement until he goes to court! I guess you haven’t read the Bible? 📖 What about all the Priests that have molested children? What sweep it under the rug? when all these young lives were ruined? If people go to PRISON everyday for these hideous crimes 👎🤮then a Pastor or Priest shouldn’t get a pass either! A slap on the hand, to be exposed to the world when your known, an to be embarrassed, lost your high position and probably move to another state is not enough. I vote for JUSTICE to be done equally! You should be ashamed of yourself and the comment you made! Sorry but that speaks of your character an what you stand for! 👍🇺🇸
Why do you think he has repented?
To be saved doesn’t mean a parachute for the wicked to avoid Hell.
The word itself in Greek means to be RESCUED, DELIVERED, LOOSENSED, FREED.
From what?
Your answer is in Matthew 1:21 & 4:16 (and Isaiah 9:2), Romans 6, Colossians 1:13, Acts 26:18, 2 Timothy 2:26, 1 Peter 2:9 and numerous other passages.
How could Morris have been in such total darkness as to apparently see a young girl as prey (according to Cindy and her father)??
Repentance means that at some point between then and now, he would have COME CLEAN and confessed everything (every detail) to the elders at Gateway and TURNED FROM SIN (2 Timothy 2:19, Titus 2:12, 1 Peter 2:21-22 etc).
He would have admitted he was in darkness and needed to be RESCUED (see above verses) and born anew (as Jesus says “you must be” in John chapter 3).
Nobody born again/born of the Spirit i.e with the Holy Spirit indwelling (i.e a Christian by definition: John 1:12-13, Romans 8:9) is capable of harming a child, especially over years and especially for their sexual gratification and it’s nigh blasphemous to suggest that such unspeakable acts are the fruit of the HOLY Spirit indwelling.
Sir,
To repent (whatever that means these days) does not erase the commission of the crime, for which there are civil penalties. Your take on this suggests that if one can remain below the radar for a sufficient period of time then all is forgotten. Do you apply the same rules to wife beating, child sex trafficking, fatalities due to driving while intoxicated? I saw the same reasoning often when the Ravi Zacharias debacle happened several years back. Many thought it should be swept under the rug because of “all the good he had done”. That’s simply another way of saying the rules don’t apply to that person. Help me understand where I can apply for that kind of preemptive exemption from just penalties which are intended for the protection of all of society.
To put emphasis on the timeframe like it has can “fall off his record” is insulting to any of the victims considering from what’s been reported that justice has not been served to them. Hope long it’s been since the abuse happened is irrelevant. I would caution on assuming that someone has repented if you don’t know them. Many are good at hiding things and giving a good appearance that all is well. We’re seeing that on a massive scale all over the body of Christ. Any victim of abuse, in any form, no matter how long ago it happened, deserves justice, either through the law or through repentance from their abuser. Possibly even both.
Joel, I don’t think God has a time limit on justice for people who rape 12 year olds. I think God is the one bringing this to light for justice to finally happen for Cindy.
Joel, a grown man laying blame on a 12 year old child for initiating sex is not repentance. Sheesh!
Lawyer for megachurch pastor blamed 12-year-old for initiating ‘inappropriate’ sexual conduct
Letters sent in 2007 by a lawyer for Robert Morris shed light on how the pastor explained his past sexual behavior with a child — and who else might have known about it.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna160661
You are conflating apples with oranges. This isn’t about salvation, it’s about legal culpability. The passage of time does not make a crime any less criminal. It just means his victim has been denied justice for 43 years. And from what I read she has been the one paying the price for his crimes. He even refused to pay her, I believe around $25,000 to cover a portion of her therapy. What arrogance!
From what I can tell, you seem to make the argument that when the church finally learns that their pastor has committed sexual abuse, the church should just simply forgive him, and let him continue in his ministry. Morris committed a heinous crime that caused grievous harm to an innocent child and her family, sullied the reputation of his church, Christianity in general, and pastors in particular. But forgiveness, in your view, apparently means we should simply wave it off as ancient history that took place too long ago to matter. Surely it matters to God that a child was violated by someone claiming to be a servant of God. And guess what? If Morris had truly repented somewhere along the line, his repentant heart would have led him to confess and resign from the pastorate then and there. Instead, he carried his secret through the years, hoping that it would never come to light, and confessed only because he knew he would soon be “outed.” Not only that, when he confessed, he minimized the seriousness of his abuse by neglecting to report that his victim was only 12 years old when her nightmare of abuse began. If I understand what you are suggesting, your views would certainly qualify as the “cheap grace” that Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote so eloquently. I encourage you to dig deeper in your understanding of forgiveness and justice.
He also minimized by saying it was ‘only’ kissing and petting but not intercourse––while neglecting to mention that he tried to have intercourse with her when she got older.
Nothing about how he’s handled this has shown repentance.
Would you agree If former pastor Robert Morris confessed and repented of his sin it follows that he will plead guilty to the 5 counts of “lewd or indecent acts to a child?”
Whenever I see a comment that is like this one, I wonder if the person making the comment is like my brother. He was convicted and spent 5 years away for the same thing Morris did. There is nothing “Christian” about making excuses for lawlessness. But offenders certainly do not want to ever be held accountable.
Yes, a grand jury has decided there is enough evidence to formally charge him with 5 felony counts and the case will proceed through the court system.
I wonder if they will deem him a flight risk and seize his passport. Also, I wonder if he will be held without bail.
According to the arrest affidavit filed today he will need to surrender his passport. The bond is set at $50,000.
Pretty low bond considering each count is a felony that carries 3 to 20 years in jail.
Yes, the warrant states former pastor Robert Morris must surrender his passport. It also states that bond is set at $50,000. I believe most states allow you put up 10% of the bond amount to avoid custody while awaiting trial.
TL, DR: “Indicted” means he has been formally accused by the local prosecutor and now has to stand trial in court.
This is VERY welcome news!!! Thank you so much, Julie, for this and allllll the fantastic work done by you and your team!!!
Yes, Julie’s coverage no doubt contributed to this development.
There you have it… Narcissistic ego driven “pastor.”
Yes, “pastor” in name only, who incessantly talked about money. Money from his congregants and viewers coming to God through him, of course. Praise God these fakes are finally being exposed and held accountable and, God willing, not escaping justice for their secret immoral deeds. We and his victim may consider him to have gotten away with it for far too long – and perhaps he thought he’d escaped and had kept his secret hidden – but God in His sovereign timing exposes and brings justice. His life is changed forever now. Was it worth it? Is what you’re facing, Mr. Morris, worth it for you and your family and millions you’ve deceived and your hefty bank account that’s incapable of buying your way out if God has ordained it to be so? I hope it strikes fear in his heart of what his potential future is and in the hearts of other “pastors” who’ve walked a similar secretive path that they may be next on God’s timetable. God’s people are watching.
Exactly! I have quit referring to these big name, big audience celebrity preachers as pastors. They are pastoring no one; they are just giving a performance on a stage. What does it do to the ego of a person to have a platform where you give a weekly lecture, loosely based on the Bible, to thousands of people and the lecture is considered to be “the word of God?”
I was disappointed when Morris’ very “questionable” teaching on absolute tithing was so widely accepted. I thought he was using via guilt placing Old Covenant Law back onto the backs of his congregation while ignoring New Testament Scripture. But alleged child sexual assault- that is sickening and incredibly sad for his victim- and now appropriate for our “secular” system of criminal ⚖️ justice to be involved.
Yes. just his manipulative greedy false teaching on tithing is worthy of an indictment. He had never repented. He claimed he had a moral failure with a young lady . Not felony assault with a minor. The elders knew she was a minor and covered up for him. God is showing him mercy by exposing him before judgement day so he can truly repent.
Wow, that is amazing news! I pray that justice will be done.
The little girls dad should have reported it to the police when he found out and got her help back then. That’s a very heavy thing to carry all by herself all those years. I speak from experience.
Having once been Cindy’s lawyer, the now AG is going to be thorough.
Robert Morris, Jerry Fallwell Jr, Joni Lamb: funny how many of the Evangelical “leaders” who most vocally support Trump were up to stuff like this.
If he is incarcerated, her statute of limitations would be refreshed. 12 Okl. St. 95(A)(7)
7. An action based on intentional conduct brought by any person for recovery of damages for injury suffered as a result of criminal actions, as defined by the Oklahoma Statutes, may be brought against any person incarcerated or under the supervision of a state, federal or local correctional facility on or after November 1, 2003:
a.at any time during the incarceration of the offender for the offense on which the action is based, or
b.within five (5) years after the perpetrator is released from the custody of a state, federal or local correctional facility, if the defendant was serving time for the offense on which the action is based;
Julie great work you are doing and reporting the truth. This is good news that justice will be served. I pray for the family great courage to walk through this difficult moments and even back when it happen. Trauma can heal with the love of God. God Bless family and Julie. Truth will always win with God
Investigative journalism has revealed the depth of corruption (open sewer) in ”christian ministry” and the church. I could read almost all stories and, for most of them, it is the use of religion to make a buck (I Tim 6:5,9-10). And when they get caught, they cling to power and privilege like Saul clinging to Samel’s garment (I Sam 15:27-30). In NT times until today, going to ministry was responding to a holy calling from God, and accepting the consequences of turning one’s back on self and financial privileges. There was a cost, and a willigness to obey. Not anymore!! Man! Ministry is a promotion with all these salaries of pastors and CEO’s of christian ministry. No need to study in medecine or engineering, go for the Gold! Blasphemy of the pulpit. All the prophets and apostles warned about these smooth talkers, people pleasers (ex: Mic.3:5,11, Ez 13:10,19, Jer. 6:14,Rom 16:17-18, I Th 2:5, etc.). This is big business, and it has to work, Christ thrown at the door of the church bearing His name. Self-delusion leads to exposure (it leaks from everywhere) and chastisement. The pagans often have to finish the job because the church/ministry won’t! What a tragedy. May God raise more godly men who fear God before they fear men.
Very happy to hear this news that Cindy Clemishire will be able to tell her story to the people of the courts and hopefully some justice will be decided in favour for her. God Bless You Cindy and keep you and your family strong while you expose this evil that has been done against you far far too many times by Robert Morris. Please remember that the Lord will never leave you nor forsake you and will be by your side all the way.
God forgives, but there remain lingering consequences to actions, especially victims. The law of the land must be applied. So many pastors are guilty of sexual assault, it’s a sad commentary on the state of the modern American Protestant church.
This is an example of perseverance. Luke 18:1-8. The persistent widow pleading to the judge for justice against her adversary. Cindy Clemishire is that woman who persisted and prevailed with God and men.
“Attorney General Drummond represented Clemishire in 2007, when she sought a lawsuit against Morris.”
When your attorney becomes the attorney general… :-]
I’m praying that Robert Morris will be the first of MANY brought to justice for sexual abuse of a minor and/or covering up the abuse for these predators.
Sin is sin. No one is perfect and that includes all of us sinners. (I am not excusing the pastors’ behavior) You reap what you sow, later than you sow and greater than you sow. This is yet another horrible event about a church leader falling. It seems to be more and more frequent in recent weeks. We are living in times of ‘things being revealed’ that have been spoken of throughout the Bible. None of it is surprising to me, but it should remind us all the ‘no one’ is immune to falling. Each and every God-fearing Christian needs to focus and re-focus daily, hourly, weekly, etc. that you do not fall. Even Jesus said, “Let he who is without sin, cast the first stone”.