By james art :max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(923x180:925x182)/gateway-church-exterior-11324-d141f1e89fc64e948f091457d0138158.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,0&ssl=1 "Texas megachurch removes 4 elders from leadership after abuse investigation: ‘It will not be tolerated’ – PEOPLE")
A Texas megachurch has removed four church elders from its leadership after the organization hired a law firm to conduct a private investigation into allegations of sexual abuse against its founder.
On Saturday, Nov. 2, Gateway Church Elder Tra Willbanks announced the removal of the elders during a service in Southlake, located in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
According to NBCDFW and ABC affiliate WFAA, Wilbanks updated the congregation on the investigation this weekend. The investigation was conducted by the Haynes Boone law firm after allegations against Gateway senior pastor and founder Robert Morris surfaced earlier this year.
Morris admitted to engaging in “sexually inappropriate conduct” with a “young lady” in the 1980s after a woman named Cindy Klemisher, who had previously been accused by WFAA of abusing her from 1982 to 1987 Mr. Morris did not admit to abusing Klemisher, but resigned from the church.
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
Wilbanks said three of the four elders suspended from the church either knew about Morris’ incident with the alleged victim or “failed to ask more.”
“We now know that there were elders and staff at Gateway who knew prior to June 14, 2024 that Cindy was 12 years old at the time of the abuse. Both groups are fundamentally flawed and simply cannot and will not be tolerated at Gateway Church,” Wilbanks told the congregation, according to outlets.
“We decided to draw a very clear 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, not one person in any group serves as an elder, is employed by, or works for at Gateway Church. They have been removed,” Wilbanks added, which was met with applause 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 Klemisher,” he added.
Wilbanks also reportedly said the church is cooperating with an ongoing criminal investigation.
Although Wilbanks did not 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 Loesch had been removed from Gateway’s website.
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A previous statement from the church in June clarified that three elders who served on Gateway’s board of elders from 2005 to 2007 — Grove, Dulin and Losche — had taken voluntary temporary leaves from the board following the law firm’s investigation.
“These three elders … are honorable men who have served Gateway Church with distinction, and each of these three elders has clearly stated that they did not know the true facts of this situation,” the statement read in part.
Clemishire’s attorney Boz Chividjian previously told NPR that in addition to the ongoing investigation, Clemishire tried to settle a civil suit against Morris in 2007 related to the alleged abuse, but she ultimately withdrew because he wanted for her to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
Morris founded Gateway Church in 2000, according to the church’s website. Now the church has several locations in the country.
If you suspect child abuse, call Childhelp’s National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453 or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.