Gateway Church founder Robert Morris indicted for baby intercourse abuse

By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Wednesday, March 12, 2025

Robert Morris, founding pastor of Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas, was indicted on 5 counts of lewd or indecent acts with a toddler by a multi-county grand jury in Oklahoma on Wednesday. The indictment stems from allegations made by Cindy Clemishire final June that he sexually abused her over a number of years within the Nineteen Eighties, starting when she was 12.

“In December 1982, Morris was a touring evangelist visiting in Hominy with the household of the alleged sufferer, who was 12 on the time. The indictment alleges Morris’ sexual misconduct started that Christmas and continued over the following 4 years. In all, Morris faces 5 counts of lewd or indecent acts to a toddler,” a press release from the Workplace of Oklahoma Lawyer Common Gentner Drummond shared with The Christian Publish on the costs in opposition to 63-year-old Morris, mentioned.

“There might be no tolerance for many who sexually prey on youngsters,” mentioned Drummond, who as soon as served as Clemishire’s lawyer as she sought to get justice previously. “This case is all of the extra despicable as a result of the alleged perpetrator was a pastor who exploited his place. The sufferer on this case has waited far too a few years for justice to be finished.”

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Gentner’s workplace famous that the statute of limitations just isn’t relevant to the costs in opposition to Morris as a result of he was not a resident or inhabitant of Oklahoma at any time.

Reacting to the indictment, Clemishire, now a 54-year-old grandmother who has been pushing to carry Morris accountable for many years, mentioned she is grateful for the indictment some 43 years later.

“After nearly 43 years, the regulation has lastly caught up with Robert Morris for the horrific crimes he dedicated in opposition to me as a toddler. Now, it’s time for the authorized system to carry him accountable,” she mentioned in a press release to CP. “My household and I are deeply grateful to the authorities who’ve labored tirelessly to make today potential and stay hopeful that justice will in the end prevail.”

Gateway Church launched a press release shared with CP late Wednesday, saying: “We’re conscious of the actions being taken by the authorized authorities in Oklahoma and are grateful for the work of the justice system in holding abusers accountable for his or her actions. We proceed to wish for Cindy Clemishire and her household, for the members and workers of Gateway Church, and for all of these impacted by this horrible scenario.”

Morris resigned from Gateway Church on June 18, 2024, simply days after Clemishire reported that he started sexually abusing her on Dec. 25, 1982. She mentioned the abuse continued for four-and-a-half years earlier than it got here to gentle. However Morris was later allowed to return to ministry.

When questioned by CP in regards to the allegations, Morris initially confessed to being concerned in “inappropriate sexual habits with a younger girl” greater than 35 years in the past. He mentioned he repented and was restored to ministry.

“Once I was in my early twenties, I used to be concerned in inappropriate sexual habits with a younger girl in a house the place I used to be staying. It was kissing and petting and never intercourse, but it surely was mistaken. This habits occurred on a number of events over the following few years,” Morris mentioned.

“In March of 1987, this example was dropped at gentle, and it was confessed and repented of. I submitted myself to the Elders of Shady Grove Church and the younger girl’s father. They requested me to step out of ministry and obtain counseling and freedom ministry, which I did. Since that point, I’ve walked in purity and accountability on this space,” Morris added.

Clemishire insisted to CP on the time, nevertheless, that she was no “younger girl.”

“I used to be 12 years previous. I used to be a little bit woman. A really harmless little woman. And he was introduced into our dwelling. He and his spouse, Debbie, and their little boy, Josh, and trusted and preached on the church that my dad helped begin after which started grooming all of us to do that, which took me many years to wrap my mind round as an grownup,” she mentioned.

“It went on for a few years. He says there was no sexual activity, however he did contact each a part of my physique and inserted his fingers into me, which I perceive now’s thought-about a type of rape by instrumentation. I used to be an harmless 12-year-old little woman who knew nothing about sexual habits.”

Elders at Gateway Church additionally initially advised CP that Morris was clear with them about his previous they usually believed he had been biblically restored to ministry. In their assertion asserting his resignation on June 18,  2024, nevertheless, the elders mentioned Morris didn’t reveal that he had abused a 12-year-old woman.

“Regretfully, previous to Friday, June 14, [2024], the elders didn’t have all of the information of the inappropriate relationship between Morris and the sufferer, together with her age on the time and the size of the abuse. The elders’ prior understanding was that Morris’s extramarital relationship, which he had mentioned many instances all through his ministry, was with ‘a younger girl’ and never abuse of a 12-year-old baby,” the elders defined.

Gateway Church subsequently licensed an impartial investigation into the allegations in opposition to Morris, and final November, Gateway Elder Tra Willbanks introduced that a number of elders had been faraway from the church as he introduced an outline of the four-month inside investigation. 

All however three Gateway elders, he mentioned, had some data about Morris’ encounter with Clemishire and “did not inquire additional.” Some, he mentioned, allegedly knew that Clemishire was a toddler when she was abused previous to her going public.

“We now know that there have been elders and workers at Gateway who knew earlier than June 14, 2024, that Cindy was 12 on the time of the abuse,” Willbanks mentioned. “Each teams are essentially mistaken and easily can not and won’t be tolerated at Gateway Church.”