Robert Morris, the Texas megachurch pastor who founded Gateway Church, pleaded guilty Thursday to child sex abuse charges, ending a decades-long case that shook one of the nation’s largest congregations.
Morris, 64, admitted in Osage County District Court to five felony counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child. Under a plea agreement, Special Judge Cindy Pickerill sentenced him to 10 years with all but six months suspended. He was taken into custody and will serve his sentence in county jail. He must register as a sex offender, be supervised by Texas authorities through an interstate compact, and pay $270,000 in restitution along with the costs of his incarceration, including medical expenses.
The charges stem from accusations by Cindy Clemishire, now 55, who said Morris began molesting her in 1982 when she was 12 and he was a traveling evangelist staying with her family in Hominy, Oklahoma. She said the abuse began on Christmas night that year and continued for several years.
“Justice has finally been served, and the man who manipulated, groomed and abused me as a 12-year-old innocent girl is finally going to be behind bars,” Clemishire shared in a statement after the sentencing. “My hope is that many victims hear my story, and it can help lift their shame and allow them to speak up.”
Morris built Gateway into a megachurch in Southlake, Texas, drawing tens of thousands weekly and gaining a national platform through books, broadcasts and political ties, including serving on President Donald Trump’s evangelical advisory board during his first term. Gateway hosted Trump at its Dallas campus in 2020 for a discussion on race and the economy.
That reputation collapsed in June 2024, when Clemishire went public with her allegations. Morris resigned within days, describing his past misconduct as a “moral failure” but not addressing specifics. A multicounty grand jury indicted him earlier this year after prosecutors cited an Oklahoma law that tolls the statute of limitations when a suspect lives outside the state.
“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 perpetrator was a pastor who exploited his position of trust and authority. The victim in this case has waited far too many years for this day.”
Morris’s attorney, Bill Mateja, said his client wanted to accept responsibility in the eyes of the law and apologize to Clemishire and her family.
“While he believes that he long since accepted responsibility in the eyes of God and that Gateway Church was a manifestation of that acceptance, he readily accepted responsibility in the eyes of the law,” Mateja said.
Last fall, Gateway removed four elders after an outside review found they had long known of Clemishire’s allegations but failed to act. Earlier this year, Morris sued the church for millions in retirement benefits, alleging it mishandled his resignation. The case is pending.
Speaking directly to Morris in court, Clemishire said, “This was 40 years in the making. Robert, I want you to see me clearly. I am no longer the silenced little girl you abused.”
