Former Texas megachurch pastor indicted on child sexual abuse charges

Details: Morris is accused of committing the offenses on a girl from when she was 12 until she was 14.

• Prosecutors allege the offenses began in December 1982 when Morris was a traveling evangelist visiting the accuser's family in Hominy, Okla., and continued for the next four years, per a statement from the Oklahoma Attorney General's Office.
• An attorney for Morris, who resigned from his role as senior pastor last June following child molestation allegations, declined to comment to local media.

Zoom out: Morris founded the Gateway Church in 2000 and it now has an estimated 100,000 attendees.

• Trump appointed Morris to his evangelical advisory committee and named him as a spiritual adviser in 2016 when the Republican leader was a presidential candidate.
• Morris hosted Trump at Gateway Church during a 2020 roundtable event. A spokesperson for Trump emphasized to the New York Times after the allegations emerged last year that the pastor had no role in his re-election campaign.

What they're saying: "There can be no tolerance for those who sexually prey on children," said Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond in a statement. "This case is all the more despicable because the alleged perpetrator was a pastor who exploited his position."

• A Gateway Church spokesperson said in a media statement it's "aware of the actions being taken by the legal authorities in Oklahoma and are grateful for the work of the justice system in holding abusers accountable for their actions."
• It added the church was continuing to pray for Morris' accuser "and her family, for the members and staff of Gateway Church, and for all of those impacted by this terrible situation."

Go deeper: Southlake and Argyle churches seek new pastors