Disgraced former megachurch pastor Robert Morris seen with black eye in new sex offender registry photo
Por Isabel Keane — – World RSS Feed
Disgraced former megachurch pastor Robert Morris seen with black eye in new sex offender registry photo
Robert Morris, who founded Gateway Church, was found guilty last year of sexually assaulting a young girl decades ago
Isabel Keane in New York Wednesday 16 September 2026 16:20 EDT
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Disgraced former megachurch pastor Robert Morris, who was once Donald Trump’s spiritual advisor, was seen sporting a black eye in a new sex offender registry photo.
The Texas sex offender registry’s website uploaded a new image of Morris on Tuesday with the prominent black bruise surrounding his right eye. The 65-year-old founder of Gateway Church pleaded guilty in October 2025 to charges of indecent conduct with a child after he was accused of sexually assaulting a young girl in Oklahoma more than 40 years ago.
“Last week, Pastor Robert was in his garage and leaned over to pick something up. When he raised up, he passed out and fell. He first hit a car door and then fell to the concrete floor. His wife, Debbie, was with him at the time,” Morris’ attorney, Bill Mateja, told CBS News Texas.
Morris was taken in an ambulance to the hospital, where doctors said he broke three bones in his face.
“Medical staff believe this might have been caused by the act of raising up coupled with him having recently taken his blood pressure medication on an empty stomach,” Mateja said.
open image in galleryAside from the broken bones, Morris was deemed to be okay by medical staff, his lawyer added.
Morris led the Southlake, Texas-based megachurch, Gateway Church, for 24 years until he resigned in 2024. His resignation came after allegations that he sexually assaulted Cindy Clemshire starting in 1982, when she was 12 years old.
The abuse occurred at her family’s home in Oklahoma while he was there as a traveling preacher. Officials said the abuse continued for four years.
Even though Clemshire reported the abuse, charges weren’t brought against Morris until decades later. In October 2025, Morris was sentenced in Osage County District Court to 10 years, but only had to serve six months in jail under a plea agreement.
Clemishire, who was 55 at the time of Morris’ sentencing, said she reported the abuse to her parents and church leaders in 1987. She later attempted to pursue allegations in 2005 and 2007.
open image in galleryMorris’ Gateway Church grew into one of the largest megachurches in the country, pushing him into the national spotlight and leading to him becoming President Donald Trump’s spiritual advisor during his first term in White House in 2016.
After Morris was released from jail this past March, Clemishire told CBS News Texas, “The most important thing for me was that he plead guilty to all five counts, and that he’d served some amount of time.”
“While most people think it’s not enough, for me, it ensured that he would spend time behind bars,” she said.
Court records show that Morris plans to serve his probation at his $1.5 million lakefront home in Palo Pinto County in Texas.
While serving probation, he is required to report his whereabouts to a probation officer. He is also prohibited from drinking alcohol, carrying a gun or associating with other convicted felons.
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