Honk News (Hominy, OK) – A prominent leader of a megachurch in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and a former advisor to President Donald Trump faces serious allegations, having been indicted on charges related to the sexual abuse of a minor. The reported events took place during the 1980s.
A grand jury in Oklahoma has charged 63-year-old Robert Preston Morris with five counts related to lewd or indecent acts involving a child, as of Wednesday, March 12. Reports indicate that the purported inappropriate behavior started in December 1982, during Morris’s visit to the child’s family in Hominy, Oklahoma, for the Christmas holiday, and persisted for a duration of four years.
A press release from the Oklahoma Attorney General revealed that the individual in question was 12 years old at the time of the incident.
The announcement highlighted that the time limit for legal action is not relevant here, given that Morris has never resided in Oklahoma.
Morris faces serious allegations, with claims of inappropriate contact with the child spanning the early 1980s. The identity of the victim remains undisclosed in the official statements and legal documents.
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Nearly a year has passed since Cindy Clemishire accused Morris of sexual abuse, claiming the incidents occurred between 1982 and 1987, as reported.
Clemshire expressed her gratitude on Wednesday, through her attorney, regarding the indictment of Morris, according to reports.
Morris, a member of Trump’s evangelical advisory board during the 2016 presidential campaign, may soon turn himself into authorities and could face arraignment as early as Monday, March 17, according to Drummond’s statement to The Dallas Morning News. Morris could be sentenced to as much as 20 years behind bars for every felony charge against him.
Reports regarding Morris’ purported misconduct emerged last June, following his resignation from Gateway Church, during which he acknowledged having engaged in “inappropriate sexual behavior” with a “young lady” in the 1980s, according to WFAA.
He refrained from disclosing the identity or age of the “young lady,” but indicated that the behavior started in his “early twenties” and took place “in a home where I was staying.”
He stated that “this situation was revealed” in March 1987 and “it was acknowledged and regretted.” He resigned from his position in the ministry and sought counseling at the suggestion of the Elders of Shady Grove Church and the father of the young woman, as stated by Morris in his June 2024 statement.
In 1989, Morris recounted, he and his wife met with the young lady and her family. “I sought their forgiveness, and they kindly granted it,” he remarked.
Clemishire informed WFAA that her family has extended forgiveness to Morris, yet they do not endorse his return to the ministry.
In June, Gateway Church announced that Morris had completed a “two-year restoration process” after the alleged misconduct.
In November, Gateway Church made the decision to remove four elders from their leadership team.
In 2000, Morris established Gateway Church in the Dallas region of Texas, as stated on the church’s website. The church has expanded to multiple sites throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area.