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PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Pastor Robert Morris pleads guilty to child sex abuse
Robert Morris, 64, pleaded guilty before an Osage County, Oklahoma, judge on Thursday. He was accused of sexually abusing Cindy Clemishire, the plaintiff in the case, in the 1980s.
DALLAS - Gateway Church founder Robert Morris was released from jail in Oklahoma and is now a free man.
Robert Morris Released
What's new:
Morris served a six-month sentence in the Osage County jail after pleading guilty to child sex abuse charges that stemmed from incidents in the 1980s.
Court records show he also paid fines as part of his release on Monday.
Morris must also register as a sex offender and will be on probation for the remainder of his 10-year suspended sentence.
Robert Morris Sex Abuse Case
The backstory:
In October, the former Southlake mega church pastor admitted guilt on five separate charges.
His victim, Cindy Clemishire, said the abuse started when she was 12 years old and lasted about four and a half years.
Gateway Church founder Robert Morris pleads guilty to child sex crimes
Morris, 64, pleaded guilty before an Osage County, Oklahoma, judge on Thursday. He was accused of sexually abusing Cindy Clemishire, the plaintiff in the case, in the 1980s.
Morris was a traveling preacher at the time and stayed in her home in Oklahoma at the invitation of her parents. When she was 17, Clemishire finally told her parents what was happening.
Woman claims Gateway Church founder Robert Morris began sexually abusing her when she was 12
In a statement to The Christian Post, Pastor Robert Morris admitted to "inappropriate sexual behavior."
Last year, Gateway Church put out a statement that included a quote from Morris admitting to an online publication that in his early 20s, he had an "inappropriate relationship with a young lady."
Morris went on to tell The Christian Post, "It was kissing and petting and not intercourse, but it was wrong."
The Gateway Church told the Christian publication that after the allegations were brought to light 35 years ago, Morris stepped away from ministry for two years to receive counseling.
Gateway Church founder Robert Morris resigns over abuse allegations
In the past, Morris has admitted to an extramarital relationship with a "young lady." Tuesday, the Southlake church’s board of elders said they weren't aware that the "young lady" in question may have been 12 years old.
The church said it was unaware that the person he told them about was only 12 at the time of the abuse.
Morris resigned as the senior pastor of Gateway Church in June of 2024.