Former Livermore LDS Bishop Charged with Sexually Abusing Minors in 1990s and Early 2000s

A former bishop of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was charged with sexually abusing minors in Livermore during the 1990s and early 2000s, authorities said.

Alameda County District Attorney Ursula Jones Dickson announced that Michael Delar Morris was arraigned on 18 felony counts of non-forcible sexual assault involving four separate victims. The alleged crimes occurred between 1991 and 2001 while Morris served as an LDS bishop in Livermore and oversaw a church-affiliated boys’ youth group.

“This case involves deeply troubling allegations of abuse of trust and authority involving children,” Jones Dickson stated. “Our office remains committed to pursuing justice for survivors of sexual abuse, regardless of how much time has passed, whenever the law permits prosecution.”

The charges include multiple counts of oral copulation of a person under 16, lewd acts upon a child, and sexual penetration by a foreign object. The crimes allegedly took place at victims’ homes, the defendant’s home, and at the LDS church on Hillcrest Avenue in Livermore.

Prosecutors have filed special allegations suggesting the offenses involved great violence or cruelty, targeted particularly vulnerable victims, and were carried out with deliberate planning. The DA’s Office said the case was investigated by multiple law enforcement agencies in coordination with their office.

The Livermore Police Department directed all requests for information about Morris’s arrest to the District Attorney’s Office. Morris’s bail was set at $920,000, and he posted bail on Thursday. His next court date was scheduled for Friday at the East County Hall of Justice in Dublin.

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