Recent court documents have brought to light troubling revelations about the knowledge of church leaders regarding the sexual abuse of a 12-year-old girl by Robert Morris, the founder of Gateway Church, in the 1980s.

According to an article published by The Roys Report on June 6, 2025, Bible teacher Jimmy Evans and leaders at New Life Church in Colorado Springs were aware of the allegations against Morris, despite public statements suggesting otherwise.

These findings raise serious questions about accountability and transparency within prominent evangelical institutions.

Cindy Clemishire, now 54, alleges that Robert Morris sexually abused her over multiple years, beginning in 1982 when she was just 12 years old. The abuse reportedly occurred in Texas and Oklahoma and continued for four and a half years.

Morris, a married evangelist in his early 20s at the time, was preaching at Shady Grove Church in Grand Prairie, Texas, during this period.

Clemishire first brought her allegations to Gateway Church leadership in 2005, and court documents now indicate that key figures, including Jimmy Evans and New Life Church leaders, were informed of the abuse far earlier than previously acknowledged.

Court documents cited by The Roys Report reveal that Jimmy Evans, a former apostolic senior pastor at Gateway Church and current leader of XO Marriage, was aware of Morris’ actions.

Around 2007, Clemishire disclosed the abuse to her pastor at the time, Mark Crow of Victory Church in Oklahoma City. Crow subsequently met with Morris and Evans, confirming the allegations.

Despite this, Evans claimed in a June 2024 statement that he was “shocked and devastated” by the revelations, asserting he had been told by Morris only of an “affair with a woman” in his early 20s, not the abuse of a minor.

The documents contradict this, indicating Evans had specific knowledge of the abuse years prior.

Similarly, leaders at New Life Church in Colorado Springs, where Morris was associated, were reportedly informed of Clemishire’s abuse in 2007.

Pastor Brady Boyd, who was part of Gateway Church in 2005 before moving to New Life, has also faced scrutiny.

Despite Boyd’s public claim that he was unaware of the abuse until it became public in 2024, internal emails and court filings suggest otherwise, pointing to the New Life hiring committee and those involved in Morris’ “restoration” process, including Evans, Olan Griffing, Pat Robinson, and Dudley Hall, as having knowledge by 2011.

Morris admitted to “inappropriate sexual behavior with a young lady” in a statement to The Roys Report, downplaying the severity by describing it as “petting and not intercourse.”

He claimed to have confessed and repented in 1987, stepping away from ministry for two years before returning with the approval of Clemishire’s father and Shady Grove Church elders.

However, Clemishire disputes this narrative, stating that the abuse was far more severe and that she was never a consenting participant.

She also alleges that in 2005, when she confronted Morris and demanded $2 million in restitution for counseling costs, he accused her of blackmail and refused to pay.

Morris resigned from Gateway Church on June 18, 2024, following the public disclosure of Clemishire’s allegations.

Gateway Church has since appointed the law firm Haynes and Boone to conduct an independent investigation, leading to the temporary leave of absence of several elders, including Morris’ son, James Morris, and others who were on the board between 2005 and 2007.