Gateway Church announced Saturday that a law firm it hired to conduct an internal investigation into the alleged sexual abuse of a 12-year-old girl by its founder Robert Morris has completed its report.

In response to the findings of Haynes Boone's report, the church said Saturday that it was making significant changes, including removing several of its top leaders and updating its leadership structure.

The Dallas Morning News has attempted to reach Morris at multiple phone numbers and sent letters to four addresses listed for him in public records, but has received no response.

Here's what we know so far about the law firm's report and how Gateway Church is responding.

Gateway fires four elders, saying they have information about Morris' abuse allegations

During the service, church elder Tra Willbanks said that before Saturday, all but three of the church's elders either knew that former senior pastor Robert Morris had sexual contact with a 12-year-old or that they had received information about the situation and “failed to provide further information.” to investigate.” ”

“We have decided to draw a very clear line here based on biblical and moral values ​​and the values ​​of our church family, and we can report to you that to date no person serves, is employed or employed as an elder in either group works at Gateway Church,” Willbanks said to applause from the audience at the megachurch’s Southlake campus.

Haynes Boone presented a report to a subcommittee of elders including Willbanks, Kenneth Fambro and Dane Minor, Willbanks said.

Elders Thomas Miller, Gayland Lawshe, Kevin Grove and Jeremy Carrasco did not appear on Gateway's elders page on the church's website as of Saturday afternoon.

Gateway is cooperating with a criminal investigation

Willbanks said the church is cooperating with a criminal investigation. “I can report that neither the church nor its current leadership are the subject of this criminal investigation,” he said.

The church did not disclose which law enforcement agency is conducting the investigation.

Gateway is revamping its governance structure

The church will revise its constitution and governance structure, Willbanks said. In the past, the church was led by a group of elders consisting of both church employees in other capacities and those with full-time employment elsewhere. Going forward, all voting members of Gateway's executive board will be non-employees, Willbanks said.

“We need to instill that level of independence and objectivity in our body of elders, and that has been lacking in recent years,” he said.

Willbanks said the staff will no longer serve as elders, with the exception of the church's future senior pastor and possibly a senior pastor. Willbanks said both positions would involve non-voting elders.

“The truth is that the events of the last few months have shown that there has been a massive failure of leadership and accountability here at Gateway Church,” Willbanks said near the end of his remarks. “It was a failure of culture, and we must be honest with ourselves and acknowledge that our culture allowed this truth to be buried for too long.”

Gateway condemns founder Robert Morris

During his Saturday service, Willbanks condemned Morris with the strongest language the church has yet used.

He said Gateway's culture became centralized around Morris, allowing the truth to be hidden for years.

“When a church focuses on one pastor, it loses its way,” Willbanks said. “Unfortunately, over the last few months we have come to the realization that at some point in the past, the culture at Gateway has become one in which power is centralized and the leader at the top is surrounded by people who want to protect them, some of them “them at any cost.”

Willbanks said the day Cindy Clemishire came forward with allegations that Morris had abused her in the 1980s, Morris directed church staff to release a statement to minimize her claims.

He said the elders were able to independently verify elements of Clemishire's story and requested a meeting with Morris, but Morris resigned without meeting with the elders.

“So far there have been six people who have declined to meet with Haynes and Boone in person, including Robert Morris,” Willbanks said.

Morris founded Gateway Church in 2000. Over nearly 25 years, the Southlake-based megachurch grew to 100,000 members and nine D-FW locations, according to the church.

Morris was an adviser to former President Donald Trump and wrote the influential book The blessed life According to an archived version of Morris' website, he hosted a television show that was broadcast in over 190 countries.