Robert Morris Pleads Guilty to Child Sex Abuse Charges, Will Get Jail and Probation

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Former megachurch pastor Robert Morris pleaded guilty Thursday in an Oklahoma courtroom to five counts of lewd and indecent acts with a child, accepting a plea deal that includes a 10-year suspended sentence and six months in jail.

Morris, 63, is the founding pastor of Gateway Church, a Dallas–Fort Worth-area megachurch launched in 2000 that had 31,000 attendees in 2019 across multiple campuses, ranking it among the five largest churches in the United States. He has also authored several books.

But in 2024, Morris faced allegations from a woman who said he sexually abused her as a 12-year-old child in the 1980s in Oklahoma, claims that prompted his resignation from Gateway Church and set the stage for Thursday’s plea. Morris would have been in his early 20s.

His accuser, Cindy Clemishire, was consulted on the plea deal, The Dallas Morning News reported. Under the plea deal, Morris must pay Clemishire $270,000 and register as a sex offender. Clemishire said the abuse continued for several years.

“I am not a victim—I am a survivor,” Clemishire said in a statement read Thursday.

The deal calls for Morris to serve six months in the Osage County (Okla.) jail, followed by a 10-year suspended sentence, or probation, that will be monitored by Texas authorities.

Justice, Clemishire said, “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,” she said, according to WFAA.

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

A spokesman for Morris also read a statement.

“He pled guilty because he wanted to accept responsibility for his conduct,” the spokesman said.

“...Not only did he want to bring this legal matter to a quick end for his own sake and that of his family, he brought it to a quick end for the sake of Ms. Clemishire and her family, and he sincerely hopes that his plea and jail sentence, coupled with probation, brings Ms. Clemishire and her family the finality that they might need.”

Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel. 

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