Robert Morris, the founder of Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas, has been indicted on five counts of child abuse in Oklahoma.
The charges, announced by the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office on Wednesday, stem from allegations dating back to the 1980s when Morris was a young pastor.
Morris, now 63, is accused of committing lewd and indecent acts with a 12-year-old girl, identified in court documents as Cindy Clemishire, as previously covered by The Dallas Express. According to prosecutors, the abuse began in December 1982, when Morris was visiting Clemishire’s family home in Hominy, Oklahoma.
The charges allege that the abuse continued for several years. The victim, Clemishire, publicly accused Morris of the abuse initially in 2024, sharing tragic details of her experiences during his visits to her home when he was a traveling preacher.
In response to the accusations, Morris admitted to engaging in “inappropriate sexual behavior” but downplayed the severity of his crimes. In a statement to The Christian Post, Morris described the incidents as involving “kissing and petting” and barely admitted that his behavior was wrong. Despite his efforts to minimize the nature of the crimes, Morris resigned as the senior pastor of Gateway Church shortly after his statement, following extreme public backlash.
Gateway Church, one of the largest megachurches in the United States, has previously expressed shock at the charges.
The church’s Board of Elders said that they were unaware of any child abuse claims when Morris resigned. The elders also noted that their prior understanding of Morris’s past extramarital relationships, which he had discussed publicly, was that they involved “a young lady” and not a child. Afterwards, the church issued an apology for their misappropriation of the situation.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who is overseeing the case, has made it clear that the charges against the former pastor are being treated with the utmost seriousness.
“There can be no tolerance for those who sexually prey on children,” Drummond said in a statement. “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.”