A former Texas megachurch pastor and spiritual adviser to Donald Trump was indicted Wednesday in Oklahoma for alleged child sex crimes.
Robert Morris faces five counts of lewd or indecent acts to a child, with the alleged crimes dating back to December 1982, according to a press release from the state attorney general’s office.
That Christmas, the indictment alleges, Morris engaged in sexual misconduct with a 12-year-old girl whose family he was visiting as a traveling evangelist. He was 20 at the time.
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Morris resigned from Gateway Church last year after a woman named Cindy Clemishire claimed he had sexually assaulted her multiple times when she was a child.
After Clemishire had come forward, Morris made a confession of sorts two days before his resignation, telling The Christian Post that he had engaged in “inappropriate sexual behavior” with a “young lady.”
“It was kissing and petting and not intercourse, but it was wrong,” he said.
In 2005, Morris attempted to keep Clemishire quiet about the alleged assault, according to a phone-call transcript obtained last year by NBC News.
NBC also reported that in 2007, a lawyer for Morris blamed Clemishire for the alleged abuse, which Clemishire says occurred more than 100 times over four-and-a-half years.
Clemishire told The Texas Tribune through a lawyer Wednesday that Morris needs to be held accountable.
“After almost 43 years, the law has finally caught up with Robert Morris for the horrific crimes he committed against me as a child,” Clemishire said. “Now, it is time for the legal system to hold him accountable. My family and I are deeply grateful to the authorities who have worked tirelessly to make this day possible and remain hopeful that justice will ultimately prevail.”
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond said in a statement that “there can be no tolerance for those who sexually prey on children.”
He added: “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.”
Morris’ connection to Trump dates back to 2016. That year, the Trump campaign listed Morris on its evangelical executive advisory board.
During the first Trump administration, Morris served on its faith advisory council.
In June 2020, Morris welcomed Trump and other Republican leaders at Gateway Church for a “Roundtable on Transition to Greatness.” Three months later, Morris was among the attendees at the White House’s Rose Garden ceremony after Trump announced Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination—an event that contributed to a COVID-19 outbreak.
Upon Morris’ resignation last June, a Trump spokesperson said Morris had no role in the campaign.
