The founder of Texas Megachurch, Robert Morris, declares himself guilty of child sexual abuse positions

The founder of a Texas Megaigha who resigned last year after a woman in Oklahoma accused the shepherd of sexually abusing her in the 1980s declared himself guilty on Thursday of five positions of lascivious and indecent acts with a child, authorities said.

Robert Preston Morris, 64, appeared before a judge in Oklahoma Osage County as part of a guilt, according to the State Attorney General’s office.

The abuse began in 1982 when the victim was 12 years old and Morris was an itinerant evangelist in Hominy, Oklahoma, with his family, according to the statement of the Oklahoma Gentner Drummond attorney general. The abuse continued over the next four years, according to the statement.

Morris was the main shepherd of the Gateway church in the Southlake Dallas-Fort Worth Forth Worth suburb, where he directed one of the country’s greatest megachurs until his resignation. He was accused earlier this year by a grand jury of Oklahoma. According to the guilt agreement, Morris received a suspended sentence of 10 years with the first six months to be delivered in the Osage County prison.

Morris was handcuffed and with a suit when he was escorted from the court on Thursday by two sheriff agents.

The victim, Cindy Clemishire, who is now 55 years old, said in a statement that “justice has finally served, and the man who manipulated, prepared and abused me as a 12 -year -old innocent girl will finally be behind bars.” Associated Press generally does not name the people who say they have been sexually assaulted unless they present themselves publicly, as Clemishire has done.

“My hope is that many victims listen to my story, and can help raise their shame and allow them to speak,” he said. “I hope the laws continue to change and that new ones are written so that the rights of children and victims are better protected. I hope people understand that the only way to stop child sexual abuse is to speak when it happens or suspected.”

Morris must register as a sexual offender and will be supervised by the Texas authorities through Interstate Compact. He was also ordered to pay his imprisonment costs, including medical expenses and restitution to the victim.

One of Morris’s lawyers, Bill Mateja, said Morris wanted to accept the responsibility of his conduct, and wanted to end the legal matter for his good, his family and Clemishire and his family.

“While he believes that he has long accepted responsibility in the eyes of God and that the Gateway church was a manifestation of that acceptance, he easily accepted responsibility in the eyes of the law,” Mateja said.

Mateja said Morris wanted to apologize to Clemishire and his family for his behavior and apologized.

When The Christian Post, when asked about last year’s accusations, Morris said in a statement to the publication that when he was just over 20 years old he was “involved in inappropriate sexual behavior with a young woman in a house where I had left.” He said it was “kissing and caressing, not sexual, but it was wrong.”

Gateway Church was founded by Morris in 2000. He has been politically active and has previously served at the evangelical advisory board of President Donald Trump. The Church organized Trump on his Dallas campus in 2020 for a discussion about racial relations and the economy.

Gateway Church declined to comment on Thursday.

The pleas were entered before the special judge of the District of Osage County, Cindy Pickerill.

“There can be no tolerance for those who take advantage of children,” Drummond said. “This case is even more despicable because the perpetrator was a pastor who exploded his position of trust and authority. The victim in this case has waited too many years for this day.”

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This story has been corrected to say that Robert Morris was accused earlier this year, not last year.

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Associated Press John Hanna’s journalist in Topeka, Kansas, contributed to this report.