Repercussions Continue at Gateway: New Lawsuit, Conference Canceled, Church Renamed, Pastor Fired

In wake of Robert Morris sexual abuse allegations & resignation, Gateway faces new sexual abuse lawsuit.

Note: This article was updated on 8/23/2024 to reflect another pastor’s removal from Gateway leadership.

Gateway Church, the Dallas-area megachurch started by Robert Morris, is facing additional sexual abuse allegations in addition to those revealed against Morris earlier this summer that led to his resignation.

Gateway Church Dallas / Photo via Facebook

Last week, a lawsuit was filed in Tarrant County, Texas, alleging a member of the Gateway Church youth group sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl also attending the church youth group.

According to reporting by WFAA, the lawsuit claims the 13-year-old girl was groomed then assaulted by a then-17-year-old boy during church youth group meetings during late 2016 and early 2017.

The lawsuit names Gabriel Reece Snyder, now 25, and Gateway Church as defendants. It asserts that Gateway was negligent in failing to prevent the alleged assaults and is seeking over $1 million in damages.

The alleged victim’s parents accuse Gateway of providing “little or no supervision” by the church’s “youth counselors, pastors, leaders, chaperones, or volunteers.”

According to the lawsuit, Snyder used “biblical beliefs and teachings of…Gateway’s pastor and ministers” to convince his alleged victim it was God’s will that she submit to him.

About the lawsuit, Gateway Church officials told WFAA, “We take any claim of abuse very seriously. We are unable to further comment regarding ongoing litigation at this time.”

Snyder was convicted on a different offense of sexual assault of a child, and is currently serving prison time at the Hightower Unit in Dayton, Texas, with an anticipated release in October 2024, CBS News Texas reported.

The alleged victim, Julia Long, chose to reveal her identity and make her story public as part of her healing.

“This lawsuit is part of a healing process for her…She had the chance to be Jane Doe but chose not to because she was a victim here,” George Boll, Long’s attorney, told CBS News Texas. “This is part of her healing process.”

Gateway recently settled another lawsuit that accused church leadership of covering up the alleged sexual abuse of a child by a member of the congregation in March 2018. The lawsuit, filed in 2020, also claimed that Gateway pastors encouraged members of the congregation to ostracize her and failed to inform law enforcement about the abuse.

Gateway said the events in the 2020 lawsuit did not occur on any Gateway campus nor at a Gateway event.

According to a statement given to CBS News Texas by Gateway Church, the victim’s mother “decided to file a lawsuit against [Gateway Church]…After the mother of the girl went through [six] different attorneys the insurance company decided to provide a settlement to avoid further litigation and expense. This was the ‘compromise of disputed claims,’ which Gateway justly defended in court.”

In light of the ongoing controversy regarding allegations against Morris, Gateway Church decided to cancel its annual conference.

“We want to let you know that after much prayer and consideration, we have decided not to hold Gateway Conference in 2024. Our congregation and staff are in the midst of navigating Robert Morris’ resignation and the emotions surrounding it,” reads a statement on the conference website.

“We are deeply sorry for the pain this situation caused the survivor, other survivors of abuse, and the Church at large. As we seek to navigate this season in a healthy way and in a manner that promotes healing for everyone affected, we believe it best to not hold Gateway Conference this year,” it continued.

The church apologized for the inconvenience and promised refunds to those already registered.

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According to the Gateway Conference Facebook page, “Every year, thousands of church pastors, leaders and staff come together at the Gateway Conference to Join us bless, empower and equip the local church.”

The sexual abuse scandal surrounding Robert Morris is not just impacting the Dallas-area Gateway church campuses. Gateway Church in Houston, led by Morris’s son-in-law Ethan Fisher, is changing its name.

A video on the Houston-area church’s website says the church will now be called Newlands Church.

“For the past year-and-a-half, God has been speaking to us about creating a distinct, localized identity. We believe the Lord has given us a new name. This next chapter is about obedience and stepping out in faith to be who God has called us to be,” the video said.

After the scandal about Morris broke in June, Fisher spoke to his congregation, which he said is independent and autonomous, not a campus of Gateway Church in Southlake.

“This past week, we have been obviously grieved and shocked over the child sexual abuse allegations that have been brought to light regarding Robert Morris,” Fisher said, according to Christian Post.

“For years, [Morris] has shared about a moral failure early on in his marriage. But prior to this past week, the leadership, including myself and even Elaine, for the leadership here at Gateway Church Houston, did not have all the facts regarding the allegations,” he said.

After resigning from the leadership of Gateway, Morris was also removed as the “apostolic and overseeing elder” at Gateway Houston, Fisher said.

This week, another pastor was fired from Gateway’s staff. Executive pastor Kemtal Glasgow was removed from his position for a “moral issue,” according to reporting by WFAA.

Elder Tra Wilbanks said in a YouTube video statement that church leadership was “informed last week of a moral issue” which the elders believe “disqualifies him from serving in the role that he had at Gateway.”

“We love his family. We love his wife, his kids. And we want to come alongside them during this difficult time and help them find restoration and healing that they need as a family.”

Glasgow apparently worked for Gateway for about a decade, leading the Frisco campus and then overseeing the multiple North Texas church campuses.

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Why does MinistryWatch report on sex crimes? These stories are tough to read and sometimes even tougher to report, but we think they are vital to our mission to bring transparency, accountability, and credibility to the evangelical church. To read more about why and how we report these stories, read “Why MinistryWatch Reports On Sex Crimes.” You can find that story here.

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