Latest news with #Southlake-based
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
New lawsuit filed by woman who accused former Gateway leader of sexual abuse
The woman who accused the former lead pastor of Southlake's Gateway Church of sexually abusing her as a child has filed a new lawsuit against the pastor, according to court documents. At the center of the lawsuit, accuser Cindy Clemishire and her father, Jerry Lee Clemishire, claim that former Gateway founder and pastor Robert Morris and the Southlake-based church benefited financially from concealing the alleged abuse, according to the documents. Clemishire and her father are seeking civil damages in excess of $1 million. Clemishire came forward last summer with the allegations that Morris had abused her in the 1980s at her Oklahoma home, the Star-Telegram previously reported. Morris resigned from the church shortly afterward and in March was indicted in Oklahoma on five felony counts of 'lewd or indecent acts to a child' in the Clemishire case. In the suit filed Thursday in Dallas County, the Clemishires claim that Morris and the church dismissed the sexual assault for years, characterizing it as 'nothing more than an inappropriate relationship,' when in reality it was the sexual abuse of a child, according to a statement from the family's lawyers. 'Morris and his co-conspirators dismissed the sexual assault of Clemishire... deceiving thousands of church parishioners and the public with a false narrative that the sexual acts performed on the plaintiff as a minor child were consensual,' the statement reads. The suit also alleges that the church 'knowingly issued false and defamatory statements' shortly after Clemishire came forward with the allegations in June 2024. At the time, church elders said they didn't have all the facts about Clemishire's abuse and did not know she was 12 years old at the time, according to the lawsuit. Several of Gateway's elders, also named as co-defendants in the lawsuit, were removed from the church last fall after an independent investigation found they did have knowledge of Morris' conduct before it was publicly disclosed, the Star-Telegram previously reported. Taken together, the actions of Morris, his family and the church's elders constitute a civil conspiracy aimed at covering up the sexual abuse of Clemishire, according to the lawsuit. 'The accusations make clear the defendants acted in concert, cooperated with each other and conspired to maximize their profits through their unlawful and unjust course of action to fraudulently conceal and cover up the rape of [Clemishire,]' a statement from Clemishire's lawyers reads. 🚨 More top stories from our newsroom: → Suspect arrested in Irving cold case murder from 1994 → Here's how much Keller school board lawyer charged taxpayers during split talks → First case of measles confirmed in Dallas County [Get our breaking news alerts.] In May, Morris filed a lawsuit asking Tarrant County courts to force the Southlake megachurch to arbitrate a dispute about his retirement pay, the Star-Telegram previously reported. Morris claimed in that suit that Gateway was using Clemishire's abuse allegations to get out of fulfilling a multi-million dollar financial commitment to him. A Gateway Church spokesperson declined to comment on the lawsuit Thursday and noted that former spokesperson Lawrence Swicegood, who is named as a defendant in the suit, has not been employed by the church since November 2024. Lawyers for Morris could not immediately be reached for comment.
CBS News
16-03-2025
- CBS News
Gateway Church leader addresses congregation after founding pastor Robert Morris' indictment on child sex abuse charges
A leader at Southlake-based Gateway Church on Saturday provided the first update to its congregation since founding pastor Robert Morris was indicted on five counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child in Oklahoma. "I'm sure that stirred up a lot of emotion for you," said Nic Lesmeister, the North Texas megachurch's executive pastor of Global Outreach. "It stirred up a lot of emotion for us, and reliving our challenging history can be at times odd. We don't know what to do with our emotions." The accusations date back to the early 1980s in Oklahoma, but charges were only officially brought this week. Morris is expected to turn himself in to police early next week. Lesmeister said Gateway is no longer affiliated with Morris, who resigned last year amid the child sex abuse allegations. He emphasized that the church is not involved in the investigation and will not provide continual updates as legal proceedings continue. However, Lesmeister added, "We want to keep praying for everyone affected by this." Morris resigned last year Morris resigned from Gateway Church last year following allegations that he had sexual relations in Oklahoma with a then 12-year-old girl, Cindy Clemishire, four decades ago. "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 in a statement Wednesday. "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." The indictment was announced by the office of Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond. A multi-county grand jury investigation resulted in five felony counts. "There can be no tolerance for those who sexually prey on children," Drummond said. "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." According to Drummond's office, the statute of limitations does not apply to this case because Morris was not a resident or inhabitant of Oklahoma at any time. Gateway Church released the following statement to CBS News Texas: We are aware of the actions being taken by the legal authorities in Oklahoma and are grateful for the work of the justice system in holding abusers accountable for their actions. We continue to pray for Cindy Clemishire and her family, for the members and staff of Gateway Church, and for all of those impacted by this terrible situation. The scandal surrounding Gateway Church's Robert Morris The public controversy for the megachurch began in June, when Cindy Clemishire publicly claimed the church's founder, Robert Morris, sexually assaulted her starting in 1982 when she was 12 years old. Morris was a traveling Evangelist in his early 20s and had become close with her family. Those allegations were first published by The Wartburg Watch, a North Carolina-based church watchdog blog, and then picked up by The Christian Post. Clemishire told The Wartburg Watch the alleged abuse continued until 1987. Morris acknowledged in a sermon in 2014 that he was "sexually immoral" when he was a young man and admitted to "inappropriate sexual behavior" In a statement to the Christian Post. "When I was in my early twenties, I was involved in inappropriate sexual behavior with a young lady in a home where I was staying," he said. "It was kissing and petting and not intercourse, but it was wrong. This behavior happened on several occasions over the next few years." Church elders said Morris disclosed to them he'd had an extramarital affair, but not that he had allegedly abused a 12-year-old. On June 18, Morris resigned from his position as senior pastor at Gateway Church. Clemishire said she has mixed thoughts and feelings regarding Morris' resignation and believes she is not the only victim. "Though I am grateful that he is no longer a pastor at Gateway, I am disappointed that the Board of Elders allowed him to resign," Clemishire wrote in a statement. "He should have been terminated." She rebuked church elders for knowing and acknowledging her claims of sexual abuse, but intentionally embracing "the false narrative Robert Morris wanted them to believe." On June 23, protesters gathered outside the church as a church elder addressed the congregation for the first time after Clemishire's statements. "As an elder, I did not know the truth and, frankly, like many of you my wife and I are shocked, devastated and grieving," said Tra Willbanks, a Gateway Church elder. "I'd like to express my personal compassion for Cindy Clemishire, I can't imagine carrying a burden like that for so many years and I want to say to you, Cindy, I'm so sorry." Four members of the Gateway Church Board of Elders, including Robert Morris' son, were put on temporary leaves of absence as an outside legal team investigates the accusations against Morris, the church said on June 28. Founded in 2000, the Southlake-based Gateway Church expanded to become one of the largest congregations in the nation, drawing approximately 100,000 attendees each weekend to its nine campuses. Morris broadcasted his weekly program live online to over 190 countries, reaching even wider audiences. Gateway Church also recently settled a 2020 lawsuit alleging child sex abuse. Gateway Church's 2020 lawsuit The case settled in April involved accusations that multiple church pastors covered up the alleged sexual abuse of a child by a member of the congregation in March 2018. The child's mother filed the lawsuit in Tarrant County in 2020, which also claimed pastors encouraged members of the congregation to ostracize her. The lawsuit also claimed that church leaders conspired when they failed to inform law enforcement that they were aware of the alleged abuse and had spoken with the church member accused. It also alleged the church leaders tried to discredit the allegations. For its part, the megachurch said it is not guilty of any cover-up or failure to report, stating that the incident from the 2020 lawsuit did not happen on a Gateway campus or at a Gateway event but between two teens during a sleepover at a family home. The church said a third teenager was told about the incident and later relayed it to his mother, a Gateway Church staff member, who reported it to "proper authorities within 48 hours." "The mother of the victim was irate and claimed [Gateway Church] intentionally hid the story for weeks and failed to report it to authorities," the church said in a previous statement to CBS News Texas. "She decided to file a lawsuit against [Gateway Church] … After the mother of the girl went through [six] different attorneys the insurance company decided to provide a settlement to avoid further litigation and expense. This was the 'compromise of disputed claims,' which Gateway justly defended in court," the church added.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Yahoo
Texas megachurch founder charged with sexual abuse of child in 1980s
March 12 (UPI) -- The founder and former pastor of a Texas mega church was indicted Wednesday by a multi-county grand jury on charges of sexually abusing a 12-year-old during the 1980s. Robert Preston Morris, 63, is the founder of Southlake-based Gateway Church, one of the United States largest, and had resigned last summer as senior pastor amid sexual abuse allegations. The indictment announced Wednesday by Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond accuses Morri of committing sexual misconduct against a 12-year-old daughter of a family he was staying with in Hominy when working as a traveling evangelist. The court document states the alleged misconduct began Christmas 1982 and persisted until at least Jan. 24, 1985, when the victim was about 15 years old. Few specifics of the alleged misconduct are detailed in the document, which refers to the victim by the initials C.C. Two of the counts accuse Morris of having "intentionally and designedly touch or feel with his hand the body and private parts, including the breast and vaginal area, of C.C." One states he allegedly "intentionally and designedly" looked upon his victim's breasts and vaginal area "after removing her clothing and exposing those areas of her body to his view." One count accuses him of molesting his victim, who was then 13 or 14 years old, "while parked in a vehicle" on Red Eagle Road in Osage County. The fifth count accuses him of touching or feeling the private parts of C.C., then about 13 or 14, "by removing her clothing and rubbing his body, including his penis, covered by his clothing, against her body, including her leg." The alleged incident again occurred while parked on Red Eagle Road. UPI has contacted Gateway Church for comment. "There can be no tolerance for those who sexually prey on children," Drummond said in a statement Wednesday. "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 resigned from his church in June after confessing to committing a "moral failure" by engaging in sexual behavior with a "young lady" over several years in the 1980s. His resignation confession was prompted by Cindy Clemishire telling The Wartbug Watch church watchdog that Morris had sexually abused her between the ages of 12 and 15. Following Morris' resignation, Clemishire told The Christian Post that she was "appalled" by his description of her as having been a young girl when the alleged crimes occurred. "I was a little girl," she told the evangelical news site in June. "A very innocent little girl. And he was brought into our home. He and his wife, Debbie, and their little boy, Josh, and trusted and preached at the church that my dad helped start and then began grooming all of us to do this, which took me decades to wrap my brain around as an adult." According to the Oklahoma Attorney General's Office, the statute of limitations is not applicable in this situation because Morris was not a resident or inhabitant of Oklahoma at any time.
