Widespread outrage is mounting after Robert Morris, a megachurch pastor and former spiritual advisor to Donald Trump, was sentenced to just six months in jail after pleading guilty to sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl.
Morris admitted in court Thursday to five counts of lewd or indecent acts with a child, stemming from abuse that took place in the 1980s. Despite the severity of the charges, the plea deal struck with prosecutors allows him to serve only half a year of a 10-year sentence, NBC News reported. He will also pay $250,000 in restitution and be required to register as a sex offender.
The leniency of the sentence has drawn swift backlash from advocacy groups and legal observers, who say the punishment is nowhere near proportional to the crime.
Morris is best known as the founder of Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas — one of the largest non-denominational churches in the U.S., with a regular attendance of more than 20,000. He was also a faith advisor to President Trump during his first term, giving him significant influence in both evangelical and political circles.
The victim, Cindy Clemishire, came forward publicly in 2024, prompting Morris to step down from his role at the church. In court on Thursday, she confronted her abuser directly.
“Today marks a new beginning for me, my family and my friends who have been by my side throughout this horrendous journey,” Clemishire said. “Robert, I want you to see me clearly: I am no longer the silenced little girl you abused.”
Many are now questioning how a man who admitted to sexually assaulting a child could receive such a light sentence. Legal experts have pointed to the decades-old nature of the case as a factor in the plea deal, but that explanation has done little to quiet public anger.
“This is not justice,” one victims’ advocate wrote on social media. “A powerful man admits to abusing a child and walks away with six months? That sends a message to survivors everywhere that their pain doesn’t matter.”
As of now, Gateway Church has not issued a public statement in response to the conviction or the sentence.
