The founder of one of the largest megachurches in the United States, Robert Morris, has admitted guilt to molesting a 12-year-old girl in the state of Oklahoma during the 1980s period.
The pastor, 64, pleaded guilty on Thursday in the local court on multiple charges of inappropriate acts with a minor. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but as part of a plea deal will only serve six months in local jail.
He will be listed as a registered offender and be required to pay a quarter million dollars in restitution.
Context of the Legal Matter
The disgraced pastor established the church in the city of Southlake, the state of Texas. He grew it into one of the top 10 largest large churches in the United States, with over twenty-five thousand visitors each week.
The victim, fifty-five, the individual who came forward as the victim of the abuse, was there in court as he admitted his guilt. In a prepared statement she stated: “There is no such thing as agreement from a 12-year-old child. We were never in an ‘inappropriate relationship’. I was not a young woman but a minor. You committed a crime against me.”
Her sibling a family member also read a statement, stating: “You acted as if you were righteous, speaking from big pulpits. As you hid behind your facade, we’ve known you are nothing but a predator.”
Morris stepped down from the church last year after the victim made her story known. She had devoted many years trying to hold her abuser accountable.
Details of the Abuse
The abuse began in the year 1982 when the pastor, at age twenty-one, was a travelling evangelist. He stayed with Clemishire’s family in their home, where he invited the child into his bedroom.
The molestation continued for the following four years.
A revealed recording of a conversation revealed that in 2005, the pastor attempted to pay off Clemishire into not speaking out, saying to her to “name your price”.
Downfall and Connections
Morris’s conviction signals a dramatic downfall for the minister. At his peak, he authored multiple popular books and his sermons were transmitted globally.
He also served as a religious counselor to Donald Trump. He was part of the White House spiritual advisory committee during the first Trump presidency and was involved in an effort to mobilize religious voters for him in the recent election.
The former president also attended the church in 2020 where he commended Morris and his senior team as “great people with a stellar reputation”.
