Megachurch founder Robert Morris charged on five criminal counts involving a child
Warning: This article contains discussion of child abuse which some readers may find distressing.
A Texas megachurch founder has been indicted for indecent acts he committed in the 1980s.
Robert Preston Morris resigned as senior pastor of the church he founded, Gateway Church, last year after admitting to 'inappropriate sexual behavior' with a child in the 1980s.
Authorities have now given an update on the investigation into this alleged behavior.
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On Wednesday (March 12), the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office issued a statement on the charges against the 63-year-old Morris.
The statement read: “The Multi-County Grand Jury today indicted the founder of a Texas megachurch on five counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child stemming from incidents that date back to the 1980s.
“In December 1982, Morris was a traveling evangelist visiting in Hominy with the family of the alleged victim, who was 12 at the time [while Morris was 21]. The indictment alleges Morris’ sexual misconduct began that Christmas and continued over the next four years.”
These charges come after Morris had stepped away from his role in the Texas megachurch following accusations by a woman, Cindy Clemishire, who said Morris abused her when she was a child.
Speaking to NBC Last year, Clemishire said Morris told her ‘never tell anyone about this. It will ruin everything.’
At the time, speaking to the Christian Post, Morris said he engaged in ‘inappropriate sexual behavior with a young lady in a home where I was staying’.
He added: “It was kissing and petting and not intercourse, but it was wrong.”
Three days after this confession he resigned.
At the time, the Board of Elders said they were not aware of the age of the child or the length of the alleged abuse.
Releasing a statement at the time, the board said: “The elders’ prior understanding was that Morris’s extramarital relationship, which he had discussed many times throughout his ministry, was with ‘a young lady’ and not abuse of a 12-year-old child."
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond also commented about the incident.
He said: “There can be no tolerance for those who sexually prey on children.
“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.”
Following the news of the charges against Morris, Clemishire issued a statement as well.
She said: ”After almost 43 years, the law has finally caught up with Robert Morris for the horrific crimes he committed against me as a child. Now, it is time for the legal system to hold him accountable.”
A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office said that Morris was not in custody on Wednesday but they would be working with his attorneys for him to surrender himself to authorities.
Gerrard Kaonga