Robert Morris, who started the Gateway Church in Texas, has admitted he is guilty of sexually abusing a child.
The 64-year-old preacher was taken away in handcuffs on Thursday after he agreed to a deal in court. He was charged with five serious crimes involving inappropriate acts with a child.
Cindy Clemishire, who is now 55 years old, said the abuse began when she was only 12.
Morris, who used to give advice to former President Donald Trump, will spend six months in jail. After that, he will be on probation in Texas, according to his lawyer.
Gateway Church has not said anything about Morris’s conviction.
Morris’s lawyer said that while Morris believes he has taken responsibility for his actions in the eyes of God, he is now accepting responsibility in the eyes of the law.
Morris will also have to register as a sex offender and pay for his time in jail, including any medical costs, as well as give money to the victim.
Clemishire said in court that the abuse happened in the 1980s when Morris was staying with her family in Oklahoma as a traveling preacher.
She said it started in 1982 and continued for four years.
Earlier, Morris and his lawyer had blamed Clemishire for the abuse, saying she was the one who started it by coming into his room and getting into bed with him.
Morris started Gateway Church in 2000. The church has grown to have many locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, as well as in Wyoming and in several prisons.
Clemishire told the court that she is happy that justice has finally been served and that the man who abused her as a child will be in jail.
She hopes her story will encourage other victims to speak up and that laws will be changed to better protect children.
Morris was charged with these crimes in March.
The Attorney General of Oklahoma said that there should be no tolerance for people who sexually abuse children and that this case is especially bad because the abuser was a pastor who took advantage of his position. He also said that the victim has waited a long time for justice.
