Robert Morris, Gateway Church founding pastor, pleads guilty in Oklahoma child sexual abuse case

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: CBS News

Updated on: October 2, 2025 / 7:05 PM CDT


Robert Morris, founding pastor of Gateway Church — a Texas-based megachurch with one of the largest congregations in the country — pleaded guilty Thursday to charges of indecent conduct with a child. The charges stem from an investigation into allegations that he sexually abused a young girl in Oklahoma more than 40 years ago.

The plea was entered during a scheduled hearing in Osage County. Afterwards, Morris was sentenced to 10 years in prison, with all but six months suspended. He will serve his time in Osage County and then be placed on probation for nine and a half years in Texas and is required to register as a sex offender. He will also have to pay Clemishire $270,000 in restitution.

As the afternoon began, Morris entered the courthouse in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, flanked by his wife, his adult children, and several of their spouses. In the moments before the hearing started, he took time to hug family members and kiss his wife. Immediately after Osage County District Special Judge Cindy Pickerill announced the sentence, Morris was taken away in handcuffs to be processed into the county jail.

Gateway Church declined to comment on Morris' guilty plea.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/texas/news/robert-morris-gateway-church-sexual-abuse-case-oklahoma/

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These are your QAnon predators that they won't take ownership of.

REFERENCE - https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143416611

He was on 45's Spiritual Advisory Board during the first term and was at the Rose Garden Amy Coney Barrett COVID superspreader event, and ended up with cases at his church not long afterwards.

[UpInArms]

1. Uggg

The predator “kissed his wife” and hugged his family members …

These are your xtian values … yay … I love my predator pedophile pastors

[Buddyzbuddy]

2. How in the f*ck did he get 9.5 of 10 years suspended?

Do they think the embarrassment is enough punishment?
Oh, wait, wait, wait. I didn't take into consideration the Caucasian factor. That explains it. I'm surprised the children haven't been charged with enticing a man of the cloth. I guess there's still time.

[QueerDuck]

3. GMTA... it's infuriating... but not surprising.

[cpamomfromtexas]

8. The wife actually told victim "she forgave her"

After she had endured 4.5 years of abuse, so she acted like the child was doing that very thing.

This is the only thing oklahoma has done right in decades.

[Buddyzbuddy]

15. Question?

What is the only thing OK has done right?

[cpamomfromtexas]

16. This is it. Nothing else at all comes to mind

They got Robert Morris in jail!

[Jacson6]

10. The victim has input on sentencing.

If he violates the law while on parole he will then spend some of those ten years in a prison.

[Buddyzbuddy]

14. The only question should be, did he sexually abuse a child?

Yes, then jail that f*cker, period. Ooo, let's give him another chance to hurt another child, then he'll really get what's coming to him. Such bullsh*t.

Rationally, I understand, you're just trying to provide a reason as to how this is the result.
But we aren't talking about some 19 year old dating a 16 year old and I don't need the facts in front of me to try to justify a grown man sexually abusing a child to rationalize the favored treatment this pedophile received. He did it, he should've lost the privilege to be free in our society for a number of years and the prosecutor and judge should be right there with him, serving time.

[mwb970]

4. There is a strong correlation between religious leaders and child sexual abuse.

Is this what their "god" wants them to do?

[MrsCheaplaugh]

5. Once again, let's all hear it

Not a drag queen, not a transgendered person.

[Stargazer99]

6. Fathers are the most sexual offenders in this country

The nasty comment to females to cross their legs needs a counter comment for males to keep it zipped up

[OldBaldy1701E]

9. Oh, there are some. Yours is one that I have heard often.

"Keep it in your pants!" is another.

'Stop letting the little head do the thinking!" (My fave.)

And, of course, when one is considering making some kind of move on someone that they find appealing, but have no idea how old they are: "If you don't know, you don't go!", meaning that if you don't know how old that person is, you don't go over there in the first place.

"Can you try to keep yourself from fucking everything that moves?" is one that I have used before.

[Scrivener7]

7. There will be a big "forgiveness" event full of tears and hands on his head when

he returns to the church, and it will all just go away.

When the likelihood is that, if he did it once, and it was 40 years ago, he's been doing it ever since and there are dozens more victims.

[republianmushroom]

11. Parents protect your children from the 3-C's.

Clergy, cops and conservatives.

[Aristus]

12. Six months in the jug. No justice.

Unless his fellow inmates can think of any.

The shit you can get away with in Texas if you're a megachurch pastor...

[2na fisherman]

13. Jimmy Swaggart cries for him

"I have sinned." Look for his crocodile tears and victim blaming. But these predatory "preachers" still keep their tax free assets and are able to keep their con game going no matter how evil and hypocritical they are. Morris must have bribed some powerful people to accept such a bad plea deal. Stories like this remind me of John Lennon's Imagine "...and no religion too."