Cindy Clemishire says Robert Morris shattered 1982 innocence

By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Thursday, March 20, 2025

Cindy Clemishire, whose story of childhood sexual abuse led to the indictment of Gateway Church founder Robert Morris by a multicounty grand jury in Oklahoma on March 12, mentioned he shattered her sheltered 1982 childhood innocence, and it has taken her a lifetime to heal.

The now 55-year-old grandmother of three testified on Wednesday together with different survivor advocates earlier than the Texas Home Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence committee in help of Home Invoice 748. Often known as “Trey’s Law,” the laws would prohibit using nondisclosure agreements in civil settlement agreements involving victims of kid intercourse abuse and trafficking.

Clemishire alleged final June that Morris, who based the Southlake, Texas-based Gateway Church in 2000, sexually abused her over a number of years within the Nineteen Eighties, starting when she was 12 and ending when she was 17 after she informed an grownup in regards to the abuse. Morris was a touring evangelist and married with one youngster on the time. 

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She informed state legislators she was haunted by disgrace she carried round like baggage for a few years and didn’t even settle for that she was abused till the age of 35.

“I was 35 the first time I truly accepted and believed that he abused me, that it was criminal, and I understood what grooming was. And that changed the course of my journey to more healing, and there’s anger, of course, involved in that,” Clemishire mentioned. 

Residing within the small city of Hominy, Oklahoma, in 1982, the place the abuse happened, Clemishire mentioned that she wasn’t but uncovered to a lot at 12 years previous.

“I mean, [19]82 was a very different time when we didn’t carry computers around in our hands and we had six channels maybe on our televisions,” she mentioned. “Innocence was very different than it is now most of the time.”

At age 17, she claimed Morris’ spouse, Debbie, informed her that she forgave her for the abuse and was grateful as a result of she felt on the time that the abuse was her fault.

“At 17, when I told, I did feel as though I was the one at fault, even to the extent that Robert Morris’ wife, Debbie, called to tell me she forgave me,” Clemishire mentioned.

“At 17 and them [Morris family] being family friends, I was thankful because I felt like I had done something wrong and I had been treated as though I had done something wrong by Robert,” she defined.

Trey’s Legislation, HB 748, was permitted unanimously by the Texas Home Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence committee to maneuver to the complete Home of Representatives for approval. If the Home passes it, the invoice will want approval by the Texas Senate and the governor to change into legislation.

Trey’s Legislation is called in honor of Trey Carlock, who died by suicide simply earlier than his twenty ninth birthday in 2019 after signing an NDA to settle a toddler intercourse abuse declare in opposition to Kanakuk Kamps in Branson, Missouri.

His abuser, serial abuser Pete Newman, was discovered responsible of molesting at the very least 57 victims whereas he was a counselor at Kanakuk Kamps. Newman was given two life sentences plus 30 years for abusing six boys on the Christian camp and was denied parole final October.

Trey’s older sister, Elizabeth Phillips, testified to the committee that the restrictive NDA he signed to settle his case had destroyed him.

“My brother referred to his settlement as blood money as if he had betrayed his own soul to keep Kanakuk secrets, and it killed him,” Phillips mentioned. “So I am here before this committee to ask you to please remember Trey. I’m asking the Texas Legislature to pass Trey’s law this session as an urgent matter of public safety.”