Large Church Minister and Ex-Trump Adviser Pleads Guilty to Sexual Abuse of a Minor
The founder of among the biggest megachurches in the US, the pastor, has admitted guilt to molesting a 12-year-old girl in Oklahoma during the 1980s.
The pastor, sixty-four, entered a guilty plea on Thursday in Osage county district court on five criminal counts of inappropriate acts with a child. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but under an agreement will serve only six months in local jail.
He will be listed as a sex offender and pay $250,000 in compensation.
Background of the Case
The disgraced pastor established Gateway church in the city of Southlake, the state of Texas. He expanded it into among the ten biggest megachurches in the United States, with over twenty-five thousand attendees each week.
Cindy Clemishire, 55, the individual who came forward as the victim of the abuse, was present in the courtroom as he pleaded guilty. In a prepared statement she told him: “There is no such thing as agreement from a 12-year-old child. We were not involved in any improper relationship. I was not a young woman but a minor. You performed a criminal act against me.”
Her sibling Karen Black also made a declaration, saying: “You pretended to be holy, preaching from big pulpits. As you concealed your true self, we’ve known you are nothing but a predator.”
The pastor stepped down from the congregation last year after the victim made her story known. She had spent years seeking justice for the abuse.
Details of the Incidents
The molestation began in 1982 when the pastor, then 21, was a travelling evangelist. He stayed with Clemishire’s family in their home, where he invited the child into his bedroom.
The molestation continued for the next four-year period.
A revealed recording of a phone call revealed that in 2005, the pastor tried to bribe Clemishire into not speaking out, telling her to “name your price”.
Downfall and Connections
The guilty verdict signals a dramatic downfall for the pastor. At his peak, he authored several bestselling books and his teachings were broadcast around the world.
He also became a religious counselor to the former president. He was part of the White House spiritual advisory committee during the first Trump presidency and was involved in an effort to organize evangelical voters for him in the recent election.
Trump also attended Gateway church in 2020 where he praised the pastor and his senior team as “great people with a great reputation”.
