Megachurch Pastor Guilty of Molesting a Girl 40 Years Ago | Crime Alert 10AM 10.03.25

Gateway Church founder Robert Morris is led from a courtroom in handcuffs after pleading guilty to child sex abuse dating back more than forty years. A 13-year-old girl who wanted to go for a drive is accused of stealing a car, drinking alcohol, and crashing at more than 100 miles per hour with an 11-year-old passenger in Arizona. Drew Nelson reports.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Crime Alert hourly update, breaking crime news Now. I'm Drew Nelson,
the founder of Gateway Church in Oklahoma. Robert Morris is
led away from a court room in handcuffs after pleading
guilty to child's sex abuse dating back more than forty years.
Sixty four year old Morris accepted a plead deal Thursday
in Osage County District's Court, admitting to five felony counts

(00:20):
of leude or indecent acts with a child. Judge Cindy
Pickerell sentenced him to ten years, with six months to
be served in jail, the rest suspended on probation. He
must register as a sex offender and pay two hundred
and seventy thousand dollars in restitution to the victim, Cindy Klemischer.
Here she is now fifty five years old speaking to NBC.

Speaker 2 (00:39):
People need to know who he is, that he came
into our home as a pedophile disguised as a preacher.

Speaker 1 (00:46):
The Oklahoma Attorney General's Office said the abuse began Christmas
Day of nineteen eighty two, when Morris was a twenty
one year old traveling evangelists staying with the Clemischer family
in Hominy, Oklahoma. It continued until nineteen eighty five. Clemischer
said More warned her not to tell anyone, saying it
would quote ruin everything. The abuse followed her into adolescence,

(01:06):
leaving her with trauma that she said, quote ripped into
every part of her life. Attorney General Gentner Drummond called
the case despicable and said Morris quote exploited his position
of trust and authority. He added, quote there can be
no tolerance for those who sexually pray on children. Morris
did not address the victim in court and kept his
head lowered while she spoke. His lawyer, Bill Matahaw, later

(01:29):
said in a written statement that Morris sincerely apologizes and
quote readily accepted responsibility in the eyes of the law
by virtue of his guilty plea. Morris resigned from Gateway
Church in South Lake, Texas last year after Clemischer came
forward Publicly Founded by Morris in two thousand, Gateway grew
into one of the largest megachurches in the country, with

(01:50):
more than thirty thousand members and multiple campuses. He was
once a spiritual advisor to President Donald Trump and hosted
mister Trump at Gateway Church in twenty twenty Outside the
criminal case, Clemasher has filed a civil lawsuit against Morris
and Gateway Church, accusing them of defamation and attempting to
minimize the abuse. She spoke as she left the courthouse.

Speaker 2 (02:11):
There is hope to come out of shame and to
be hauling in And that's my hope for me, my
hope for other victims, and even for Robert.

Speaker 1 (02:20):
More crime and justice news after this. A thirteen year
old girl who wanted to go for a joy ride
is accused of stealing a car, drinking some booze, and
crashing more than one hundred miles per hour with an
eleven year old passenger in Arizona. The crash happened around
one am Tuesday near Flagstaff. State troopers say the girl

(02:43):
drove a stolen Chevrolet Silverado the wrong way across the
median on Interstate forty before correcting course and speeding eastbound.
A deputy saw the truck climb onto a guard rail,
roll several times, and slam into a tree. The Arizona
Department of Public Safety said the impact was so strong
that the steering wheel snapped off and landed fifty feet
from the wreck. Both children were taken to a hospital

(03:06):
with non life threatening injuries. Troopers say the thirteen year
old girl showed quote six out of six signs of intoxication.
A blood test revealed a blood alcohol level of point
one eight three, more than twice the legal limit for
adults zero point zero eight. The Silverado had been reported
stolen earlier after fleeing from Flagstaff. Police Authorities said the

(03:27):
girl will face DUI charges, along with other possible counts
tied to the theft and reckless driving. The Highway Patrol
stated quote, We're thankful the kids are okay, but this
could have ended way worse. Juvenile joy riding and underage
drinking are extremely dangerous. Talk to your kids about the
dangers of drinking and unlicensed driving. A twenty three year
old man vanishes after leaving his San Francisco apartment saying

(03:49):
he was late for work. Sean Tyler Dickerson was last
seen December second, of twenty eleven. He rushed out of
his apartment around eleven thirty am, telling his roommates he'd
overslept and was late for his shift at Rollo, a
men's clothing store on Market Street. He never got there.
The day before, Sewn had left work early for lunch
and did not go back. He texted his boss that

(04:10):
night to apologize, but his boss warned him that he
needed to be more reliable. That night, Sean stayed up
late talking with his roommates until about four am. On
the morning he vanished. Sean left without his coat or
personal items. Instead of going to work, he walked through
the city taking photos with his phone. At exactly four
h two pm, he uploaded sixteen pictures to Facebook, something

(04:31):
he had never done before. The images included photos of
his feet, the water, and a plate of food that
was the last trace of him. Shawn's belongings were left
untouched in his bedroom, including his keys, clothes, and sunglasses.
His bank account, phone, and social media have shown no
activity since those pictures. His mother and friends say he
sometimes withdrew from others, but never stayed away for this long.

(04:54):
His ex girlfriend and former roommates say he was struggling emotionally.
Sean was one of five young men who went missing
in San Francisco between twenty ten and twenty thirteen, a
group later called the California Five. Each case remains unsolved.
Sean Dickerson was white, five eight one forty blonde hair
that He sometimes dyed brown and blue eyes. He was
last seen wearing a gray hoodie, black dress shirt, black pants,

(05:16):
and well worn brown dress shoes. Anyone with information about
his disappearance is asked to contact San Francisco Police at
four one five five five eight fifty five oho eight.
For the latest crime and justice news, follow Crime Alert's
hourly update on your favorite podcast app. With his crime Alert,
I'm Drew Nelson.