Four former Gateway Church elders are denying allegations that they helped conceal sexual abuse claims or defamed the woman who has accused Pastor Robert Morris of abusing her as a child.

According to KERA News, Steve Dulin, Jeremy Carrasco, Gayland Lawshe, and Thomas Miller filed motions to be removed from the lawsuit that accuses them all of slandering the alleged victim, Cindy Clemishire.

Clemshire and her father filed the suit in June, claiming that the elders, Morris and his wife, hid the abuse.

In their suit, both Clemshire and her father claim that Morris characterized the alleged assault as consensual after Clemshire seduced Morris. She was a teenager at the time.

Dulin, however, filed a general denial. In court documents, he said the alleged defamatory claims had substantial truth to them and were his expressions of opinion. He also stated that Clemshire’s claims do not prove that he acted with actual malice. His lawyers also claim that her suit is past the one-year statute of limitations on defamation claims and past the two-year statute of limitations on intentional infliction of emotional distress claims.

"The statements at issue reflect Defendant Dulin's acknowledgment of new information and his regret for not having all the facts earlier," court documents read. "There is no evidence to suggest that Defendant Dulin acted with actual malice in making any of the alleged statements, as Defendant Dulin did not know that any statements were false or act with reckless disregard as to their truth or falsity."

Carrasco and Miller also deny wrongdoing. Carrasco said that if Clemshire’s reputation as diminished, then it was due to “the acts of third parties” over whom he lacked control. Like Dulin, Miller said any statements he made in the past were, too, “made without actual malice.”

Lawshe also filed a general denial but did not provide details on the court documents.

Morris stepped down in 2024 following allegations of sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl in the 1980s. The allegations were first published by The Wartburg Watch, a blog dedicated to examining abuse and other issues within the church.

Then, in November, Gateway fired staff who knew about the alleged abuse, KERA News reports.  The megachurch did not publicly name anyone, but Carrasco, Lawshe, Miller, and Kevin Grove were removed from the church’s website.