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() Megachurch leader Robert Morris, 64, pleaded guilty Thursday on charges he sexually abused a girl in the 1980s.
Morris, the founder of the Gateway Church based in Texas, admitted to five felony counts of indecent behavior with a child in Oklahoma. He initially pleaded not guilty.
Under a plea agreement, he will serve six months of a 10-year sentence and pay $250,000 in restitution. Morris is also mandated to register as a sex offender.
Robert Morris was an evangelical leader
Before the allegations, Morris had expanded Gateway into a megachurch with tens of thousands of followers, was a best-selling evangelical author with sermons aired globally, and was a spiritual adviser to President Donald Trump.
Following the allegations, he stepped down from his position at Gateway Church. While he did not address the charge details specifically, he acknowledged a “moral failure.”
Four elders were removed from the church after an investigation found they knew about the allegations but did nothing about them.
Morris abused a 12-year-old girl
Cindy Clemishire, the woman who accused Morris, was in court when he pleaded guilty.
Clemishire stated the abuse commenced in 1982 when Morris, then a traveling evangelist, was staying with her family. She was 12 at the time, and the abuse persisted for several years.
Clemishire told her parents and church leaders about the abuse in 1987. None of them contacted the police, and Morris went through a “restoration process” and then returned to ministry.
Gateway’s response to the allegations
In the mid-2000s, she approached Gateway seeking $50,000 to cover the costs of therapy needed after the childhood abuse. A settlement fell apart because she was not willing to sign a nondisclosure agreement. She later said she does not believe she is the only victim.
At the time, a letter from Morris’ lawyer told Clemishire that she bore responsibility for the abuse.
She went public with her accusations last year, leading to an investigation and charges. The state of Oklahoma filed charges based on an old law that stops the clock on the statute of limitations when a defendant moves out of state.
At the hearing, Clemishire read a prepared statement detailing how the abuse affected every part of her life, including relationships, her marriage and how she raised her children.
