Megachurch founder and Trump ally to surrender on child sexual abuse charges

A former pastor and founder of a Texas megachurch is expected to turn himself into Oklahoma authorities on child sexual abuse charges.

Robert Preston Morris, 63, resigned last year as pastor of Gateway Church in the Dallas suburb of Southlake after a woman accused him of sexually abusing her in the 1980s.

He was charged last week with five counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child and is expected to surrender to officials in Osage County on Monday, his attorney Mack Martin said.

He said he anticipated entering a not guilty plea on Morris’ behalf but declined to comment on the charges.

Court records show an Osage County judge set a $50,000 bond and ordered Morris to surrender his passport to the local sheriff.

The alleged abuse started in 1982 when the victim, referred to in the indictment as C.C., was 12 years old and Morris was a traveling evangelist staying in Hominy, Oklahoma, with her family, according to the attorney general’s office. The abuse allegedly continued for four years.

Cindy Clemishire, Morris’ accuser, said in a statement that she is very grateful to the authorities who have worked to make the indictment possible and is hopeful “justice will ultimately prevail.”

“After almost 43 years, the law has finally caught up with Robert Morris for the horrific crimes he committed against me as a child,” said Clemishire, now 55.

“Now, it is time for the legal system to hold him accountable.”

The AP typically does not name people who say they have been sexually assaulted, but Clemishire said she would like her name included.

Morris was known to be politically active. The church hosted President Donald Trump on its Dallas campus in 2020 for a discussion on race relations and the economy.

Morris could face up to 20 years in prison for each of the five charges, according to the attorney general’s office.