Texas Megachurch Removes 4 Elders from Leadership Following Abuse Investigation: 'Will Not Be Tolerated'

11/03/2024 07:13 PM

Gateway Church, located in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, launched an internal investigation after a pastor was accused of sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl

A Texas megachurch has removed four church elders from its leadership after the organization hired a law firm to conduct an private investigation into the sexual abuse claims against its founder.

On Saturday, Nov. 2, Gateway Church elder Tra Willbanks announced the elders' removals during a service in Southlake, located in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

According to outlets NBCDFW and ABC affiliate WFAA, Willbanks updated the congregation on the investigation this weekend. The investigation was conducted by law firm Haynes Boone after the accusations against Gateway senior pastor and founder Robert Morris surfaced earlier this year.

Morris has admitted he had "inappropriate sexual behavior" with a "young lady" in the 1980s after a woman named Cindy Clemishire previously alleged to WFAA he abused her from 1982 to 1987. Morris did not admit to abusing Clemishire, but did resign from the church.

Related: Pastor of Texas Megachurch Reportedly Admits 'Inappropriate Sexual Behavior' After Woman Alleges Abuse from Age 12

Willbanks said that three out of the four elders removed from the church either knew about Morris' incident with the alleged victim or "failed to inquire further."

"We now know that there were elders and employees at Gateway who knew before June 14, 2024, that Cindy was 12 at the time of the abuse. Both groups are fundamentally wrong and simply cannot and will not be tolerated at Gateway Church," Willbanks told the congregation, per the outlets.

"We have decided to draw a very bright line here based on Biblical and moral values and the values of our church family, and we can report to you that as of today, no individual in either group serves as an elder, is employed by, or works at Gateway Church. They have been removed," Willbanks added, which was met by claps from the congregation, NBCDFW said, before adding that the church was cooperating with a criminal investigation.

"To our knowledge, there are no other victims of Robert Morris other than Cindy Clemishire," he added.

Willbanks also reportedly said that the church is cooperating with an ongoing criminal investigation.

Although Willbanks didn't specifically name the elders who were removed from the church, both outlets reported that the names of Elders Kevin Grove, Thomas Miller, Jeremy Carrasco and Gayland Lawshe had been removed from Gateway's website.

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A previous June statement from the church clarified that three elders who were on Gateway's board of elders from 2005 to 2007 — Grove, Dulin and Lawshe — took voluntary, temporary leaves of absence from the board following the law firm's investigation.

"These three Elders ... are men of integrity who have served Gateway Church with distinction, and each of these three Elders has clearly stated that they had no knowledge of the true facts of this situation," the statement read in part.

Clemishire's attorney Boz Tchividjian previously told NPR that in addition to the current investigation, Clemishire had tried settle a civil claim against Morris in 2007 related to the alleged abuse, but she eventually walked away because he wanted her to sign a non-disclosure agreement.

Morris founded Gateway Church in 2000, according to the church's website. The church now has several locations across the country.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.