Hidden True Crime - Mica Miller: The Full Story

Episode Date: June 14, 2024

Warning: This episode discusses topics related to suicide and self-harm. Please listen with caution. Lauren Matthias was a television reporter for a decade and has followed the Lori Vallow and Chad Da...ybell case since 2019. She and her husband, Dr. John Matthias, a criminal psychologist, started Hidden True Crime in 2020 with their Season, 'Beyond the Veil,' a psychological deep dive into the doomsday murders and prophet. What started as a simple conversation at their dinner table became a captivating podcast. Join the dynamic duo of Dr. John Matthias, a forensic psychologist, and Lauren Matthias, an investigative journalist, as they delve into the psychological facets of unthinkable crimes every week. Their unique perspectives and in-depth analysis offer a fresh take on true crime storytelling. Thank you for your support through sponsorships, subscribing, listening, and becoming a Patreon member at Patreon.com/HiddenTrueCrime Our Sponsors:* Check out Acorns: https://acorns.com/HIDDENTRUECRIME* Check out Acorns: https://acorns.com/HIDDENTRUECRIME* Check out Armoire and use my code HIDDENTRUECRIME for a great deal: https://www.armoire.style* Check out Effecty and use my code HIDDENTRUECRIME for a great deal: https://www.effecty.com* Check out Happy Mammoth and use my code HIDDENTRUECRIME for a great deal: https://happymammoth.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/hidden-a-true-crime-podcast1836/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:02:16 Only on Verizon. With new line on my plan, service plan required for watch and tab. Additional terms apply. See Verizon.com for details. Hello, Hidden Gems. During Chad Daybill's trial, while I was away reporting, daily in Idaho, John and I noted a suspicious death that police deemed a suicide. The investigation entered the sudden death of a popular South Carolina pastor's wife.
Starting point is 00:03:45 Police will meet with a family of a woman found dead under suspicious circumstances. The death of Micah Miller has affected us, especially Dr. John. And it sparked many conversations at our dinner table, as well as on the phone while I was away attending Chad Daybill's trial. We realized that it is time to talk about it. And for John, a forensic and clinical psychologist, he will soon discuss what he sees when it comes to the death of Micah Miller. 30-year-old Micah Miller's body was found on April 27, 2024, in Lumber River State Park about an hour and a half drive from Myrtle Beach. Police say a 911 call came from the park, and police say Micah made the call. On the now-released 911 call, the caller says she plans to take her own life.
Starting point is 00:04:31 Robinson County 911, what's the address of your emergency? Hi, are you able to trace the location of my phone? Um, let me see. You don't know where you're at? And National Park. What's the phone number you're calling me from? 843-655-5242. Um, where's the park located at?
Starting point is 00:05:14 In Fair Bluff. my location on I think on my phone find my phone is on just did my share of my location okay I'm showing hold on one second thank you are in Robeson County at Lumbie the Lumber River State Park and yeah that's where I am okay tell me what's um happened um I'm about to kill myself and I just want my family to know where to find me. Okay, ma'am, just listen to what I'm seeing, okay? Let me make sure I got the exact location where you're at, okay?
Starting point is 00:07:02 Just one minute. When police arrived, they found 30-year-old Micah deceased, and police say her cause of death was a self-inflicted gunshot wound. It wasn't long after her death that the public learned Micah was an incredibly beloved woman, sister, daughter, friend, and faithful churchgoer. We learned she was someone extremely active in the church's youth program was called Beautiful Inside and Out, Oblifting, inspiring, and Giving. Those who knew her said she helped children, women, and was service-oriented.
Starting point is 00:07:29 A fellow churchgoer at Solid Rock Church in Myrtle Beach, where she attended, described Micah as, quote, the nicest person you ever talk to, end quote. It also wasn't long after her death that rumor started swirling about Micah's husband. The local pastor at Solid Rock Church in Myrtle Beach, she attended. Pastor John Paul Miller, a man she was divorcing and a man who many say was abusive, who people say Micah met when she was just a 14-year-old girl, but now as a 30-year-old woman was seemingly trying to escape. As pastor, it was Micah's husband who broke the news of her death to the couple's solid rock church's congregation. It's one reason the rumors started swirling so
Starting point is 00:08:09 suddenly, because Minnie considered the sermon out of touch and insensitive. He even concluded at the church meeting by asking everyone in the congregation to leave and not to mingle afterwards. We're not going to do an altar call today. Instead, I'm going to have you stand up and I'm going to make an announcement. And after the announcement, I'm going to ask that you leave church quietly and don't talk about the announcement here in the building, please, if you can, so y'all can stand your feet. Before I make the announcement, I also want to say that my request to you is that you will continue to come to church and serve and give for the next, you know, a little bit, because I don't want to have, I'm taking a little bit of a break, and I don't want
Starting point is 00:08:52 to have to worry about the church. My break may be a few days, a few weeks, I don't know. I got a call late last night. My wife has passed away. Yeah, it was self-induced, and it was up in North Carolina. And we're going to have a funeral for her next Sunday here at 3 p.m. and so it's all I can, yeah, I'm just kind of going on adrenaline right now. So y'all pray for me and my kids and everybody. And she was, she wasn't, you all knew that she wasn't well mentally. And then she needed her medicine that was hard to get to her. John Paul's announcement of Micah's death created quite the stir and left many true crime
Starting point is 00:09:30 creators and sleuths wondering if there might be more to this than a suicide. Micah's obituary didn't help either. Allegedly written by her husband, it contained the line, quote, Micah made the greatest of efforts to always be the best wife she could be. She truly served Jesus and her husband with all of her heart. She would praise her husband after every church service telling him he was the best preacher in the world. End quote. It sounded self-centered at best.
Starting point is 00:09:57 After praising himself in her obituary, John Paul started claiming in interviews with local news outlets that Micah had struggled with suicidal tendencies. Listen to him here on Myrtle Beach's ABC 15. So over the years since we've been married, you know, some people struggle with high blood pressure, some struggle with diabetes. Her struggle was mental health. And whenever she stayed on her lithium, things were amazing. She'd come off sometimes and things were a little unusual. Per her doctors, they told her even just recently they had written that she was a homicidal, suicidal. And she had struggled with suicide before. And each time you helped her through it,
Starting point is 00:10:37 took her to her doctor, and we got through it and everything was fine. So this past time was still a shock, an incredible shock. But Micah's family sided with those questioning John Paul and the question surrounding Micah's death. One week after Micah's body was found, her sister, Sierra filed a request to be the special administrator of Micah's estate. In the filing, Sierra makes some shocking allegations, and I'll read it in full. I am Micah's younger sister, having been raised by our parents, Michael and Angelita, with our siblings, Nathaniel, Destiny, Anna, and Abby. We ultimately settled in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina in 2007,
Starting point is 00:11:13 with our mom and stepdad. I was aware of Micah's family dynamics and relationship with her husband, respondent John Paul Miller, and her stepchildren. Micah and I spoke every few days, texting daily, so much as to even create playlists together. Micah would drive to visit me with my family in Gaffney, South Carolina, at least once a month. I know my sister to have expressed the abuse and violence against her by her husband to others, including family members and members of the church congregation. Micah told me that there were people following her, keeping track of where she went. She thought that Mr. Miller hired people to follow her. Mr. Miller later confirmed this during a sermon I watched, and Micah confided in me that Mr. Miller was moving assets that were in his name,
Starting point is 00:12:00 such as his vehicle, changing the deed to their house to the church, transferring interest in crocodile rocks to one of his sons. In February, 2024, Mr. Miller removed my sister's personal items from the home they shared while she was admitted to a mental health facility and left them at the apartment of a woman named Diana. My sister was not aware that her personal possessions had been removed from her residence until she was released from the hospital. Prior to her admission to the mental health facility, Micah was gathering and sorting the evidence that she had to bring to an attorney for filing for divorce to support her claims against Mr. Miller. And as to his abuse, character, his
Starting point is 00:12:43 paramours, and associates, he paid off or blackmailed. While at the facility, those documents, emails, files, etc. were removed from her phone, personal laptop, vehicle, and purse, and never recovered. Further, Micah wasn't able to access her ICloud account, email, or Facebook profile, Mr. Miller continued using at least one of Micah's accounts, causing any recipient to believe it was Micah's communications. Micah talked about what she wanted her life to be like following her divorce from Mr. Miller. Having traveled for a church mission this past fall from October 15th through October 27th, 2023, Micah was intending to participate in additional missions, even to live part-time in Kenya. Micah recently shipped some of her personal items to Kenya in preparation of her stay there.
Starting point is 00:13:33 My sister was hopeful for her future after filing for divorce from John Paul. My sister also expressed to me that she was fearful that she would not make it to the divorce and that her life would be taken from her. It is my belief based on conversations with my sister that she told multiple people, including other family members. Micah stated to me on many occasions, quote, If I end up with a bullet in my head, it was not by me. It was J.P. End quote. Micah forwarded a family group text message, notifying us that Mr. Miller was served the divorce papers on April 25th, 2024.
Starting point is 00:14:11 On April 27th, 2024, my sister, Micah Miller, was found dead as a result of a gunshot wound in Lumberton, North Carolina. end quote. So her sister Sierra makes some shocking allegations. And yet when you delve further, the allegations are not that far-fetched. Police reports show that on March 11, 2024, about a month before Micah's last separation filing, Micah told police her tires had been slashed at a pier in Myrtle Beach. She claimed this was the second time that her tires had been deflated that week. And police confirmed that a tire deflation device that you can buy online was sticking out of one of her tires. Later that day when she went to repair her tires, she called police again to say a tracking device was found on her car,
Starting point is 00:14:56 and she told police who she suspected was watching her, although police say they never charged the suspect that they didn't name because they didn't have enough evidence. According to police reports, the suspect attempted to again bother Micah hours after she made the report. She said he had also been harassing her with texts and calls. Most importantly, Micah told police that she feared for her life. So who is John Paul Miller?
Starting point is 00:15:23 Micah's estranged husband and local pastor? Beyond Micah being his second marriage and the stepmother to his five children, we know so much more since family and friends started speaking up and as true crime sleuths delved into Micah's life and relationship, bringing truth to the surface. First, let's start with John Paul's confession in reference to the tracking devices, sent to News Nation after Micah's death. quote, I hired a PI to put trackers on her car to know if she was going to a gun store
Starting point is 00:15:53 because she kept trying to get a gun the past few months. I never once in my life hurt her in any way ever, end quote. And what else do we know? Well, Micah and John Paul were wed in 2017. And Micah filed not just one, but three, three separate support and maintenance requests beginning in 2023, meaning Micah could continue to receive court ordered support during the separation. And get this, Micah had filed for separation from John Paul only 12 days before her death. Micah had also filed for divorce not once but twice, that second time, just days before her death.
Starting point is 00:16:28 And the first time being October 2023. And in those documents, Micah claims again that John Paul cheated on her often and threatened her with locking her out of her own house, telling the church congregation through sermons about her mental health issues and throwing her belongings out of the house. Micah would stay with her sister, according to the sister, and the 911 calls made. Micah's sister said John Paul was waiting outside of Micah's house with a gun. Listen to this 911 call confirming this. I need a report of a non-emergency at this point. Okay, what's going on?
Starting point is 00:17:06 My sister came here today to visit because her and her husband were having issues. She came from Myrtle. She told him she'll be home on Tuesday. And he is texting me at this point saying, I'll be at your house at 1255. I'm armed and ready. And I will keep you up all night. I'm going to get her back. And I said, you're not welcome at my house. There are no trespassing signs up. You cannot threaten weapons.
Starting point is 00:17:31 He has six because he's just purchased recently. And he's saying, I'm armed and ready. Micah ended up returning home. And four months later, in February of this year, Micah was admitted to a hospital because, according to John Paul, she was not taking her medication and having a psychotic break. John Paul allegedly had power of attorney over Micah's medical care, and during this time, Micah's divorce filings were dismissed. So this was all February 24.
Starting point is 00:17:57 And John Paul also took control of Micah's purse and car keys while she was in the hospital, while the divorce was dismissed, an action that he justified claiming that his concern for Micah's mental state, manic episodes, and Pulses spending, and he had concerns, get this, about her selling the car, hence he took the car keys. Note he wasn't concerned about Micah harming herself, just selling the car. Hence, he needed to take her keys. And he also claimed he was worried Micah might buy a gun to get this shoot him. Again, no actual concern for Micah or any self-harm. So Micah's family, they call John Paul manipulative and his claims false. They say that she never stopped taking any medications. They say her mental illness was exaggerated. And Micah's dad claims that John Paul showed him. him the power of attorney over Micah's care and that they weren't signed and he suspects John Paul manipulated or even created fake power of attorney forms. So if this isn't heavy enough, we learned that Micah and John Paul met nearly a decade before they went when she was just 14 or 15 years old
Starting point is 00:19:04 depending on who you ask or the story people say. And she was in the church youth group, leading many to believe he groomed Micah since John Paul would have been 28 years old when they met. And according to John Paul's ex-girlfriend in a Facebook post, this wouldn't be unfathomable. Cherish Every states, quote, while posting updates, I am going to speak out on the Micah Miller case. I am an ex of John Paul Miller. I was 14 years old and he was 19. I was a child, but at the time I didn't see an issue. but at 19, obviously he should have. We dated for a year and I found out that he was dating his first wife, Ali,
Starting point is 00:19:46 while we were together, unbeknownst to her. She later found out and he lied about it as he continued to do about the multitude of infidelities, the remainder of the marriage. This has been hard to watch and keep quiet about, but I feel at this time to be transparent about it. I attended and graduated from Grand Strand Academy, later renamed Cathedral Hall Academy. The church in school his father founded and was head,
Starting point is 00:20:09 master of, which later became solid rock. So I dated John Paul and dealt with a small amount of his abuse comparatively. J.P. also contacted me inappropriately after Ali left him due to infidelity. Around 2016, was not remorseful of his actions to hurt with others, was upset over the amount of people that left the church that hurt him financially and was quickly shut down on my end. What I did witness with myself and my siblings as members of the church's teenagers is overall abuse from JP and his father, Dr. Wayne Miller, to others. I also visited many state parks with JP, visiting his dad because he loved state parks to reconnect with God. Murdle Beach State Park is also where Dr. Miller was arrested with soliciting gay sex. You can look that up publicly.
Starting point is 00:20:56 The fact that Micah was found in a state park only brings me back to this family. I feel I have been a coward and not speaking up and dealing with his privately with my family, but I want to say we believe that this was Micah's last and oh so important purpose, is to stop this man from continuing to her others and to stop him as a representative of our Lord and Savior. I am a Christian and I love the Lord so much and I want to say that what John Paul Miller and Dr. Wayne Miller represents is not of God and it is not a representation of Jesus Christ. God is good and pure and kind and he would never want a man to treat his wife the way J.P. treated Micah. Please do not let this evil man turn you away from the church. The church of God is so beautiful and good and this man is an
Starting point is 00:21:44 evil representation of someone that took advantage of that. Do not let the devil win. Hashtack justice for Micah. Hashtag Micah Miller. And quote. Also, in a 2017 affidavit, John Paul's ex-wife, so the mother to his children, claims that John Paul admitted to her he had sex with church members and that they were under the age of 16, admitted to sleeping with prostitutes, even maybe having an addiction to prostitutes, and she claims John Paul was having an affair with Micah in 2015 when she was her children's babysitter. The ex-wife, Alley, claims that John Paul not only admitted this to her, but confessed to his entire church congregation, who recommended counseling, and that he refused as well as refused to leave his position in the church,
Starting point is 00:22:31 forcing many disheartened church members to walk away. We'll get more. to these details here shortly. Don't worry. John Paul's numerous affairs seem to pan out too, and it looks like he even had a current girlfriend at the time of Micah's... Most people don't realize how much their personal information is being bought and sold every day. Data brokers are making billions, pulling details about you from public records and the internet, and then packaging and selling it, usually without your consent. That's how your information lands in the hands of scammers, spammers, even stalkers. It's why you get endless robocalls and why ads seem to follow you everywhere.
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Starting point is 00:23:58 John Paul conducted the late husband's funeral. A timeline of events leading to Micah's death was posted by a man named Robbie Harvey. And according to Harvey, he brings up some additional strange sermons and actions taken by John Paul. Harvey states, and I quote, on February 4th, Pastor John Paul preaches a sermon on Cora and Moses and how it's wrong to rise against religious leaders. On February 23rd, Pastor John Paul files for spousal support. On February 25th, in another sermon to his congregation, Pastor John Paul says a mentally ill person doesn't know that they're sick. You have to trust people around you. The thing that's sick in your mind and your mind is what you need to realize that you're sick. What's one financial
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Starting point is 00:27:32 On March 10th, Pastor John Paul preaches a sermon and reveals that he went through two years of messages on his wife's phone. He found that 18 people reached out to her saying, quote, if you ever want to talk about your husband, you can talk to me and I'll keep it confidential, end quote. Visibly upset, the pastor followed up with, that's a demon talking, end quote. March 10th, Pastor. John Paul says to his congregation, one thing I'm going to preach about is getting rich, strong, healthy, and finding a hot wife that loves Jesus, end quote, while wearing his wedding ring.
Starting point is 00:28:06 March 10th, Pastor John Paul tells his congregation that his wife was in the hospital and as soon as she got out, she left him. In quotes, John Paul says, she gets out and she just leaves, just completely leaves me, leaves everything, drains the bacon count and just goes, guess what? While you're talking bad about me out there, I'm building a school in Africa for. over 100 kids to be able to be fed, end quote. March 12th, Pastor John Paul requests for spousal support was dismissed and there's no exclamation as to why. March 17th, Pastor John Paul tells a story of a pastor whose wife left him for a member of his staff. The pastor had hired a third party company to find her once he found her divorce papers were drawn up. When the time
Starting point is 00:28:47 came to sign the papers, the pastor couldn't do it because, quote, Bible says divorce is wrong, and quote, and if she wanted out, she would have to leave him. March 17th in a Facebook post made by Micah's sister Sierra Francis. She says that she kept an eye on her phone, in quotes, for fear of my sister's safety due to other behaviors towards her, end quote. She goes on to mention the sermon from March 17th and calls out the congregation of Solid Rock Church. And on March 18th, Micah posts a video encouraging others.
Starting point is 00:29:16 She says, quote, I'm just making sure my heart doesn't have any unforgiveness, bitterness, resentment, just forgiveness and hope for the future and peace, end quote. Hey, everybody. I just want to let you know that I'm alive and well. And life's been kind of crazy a couple past weeks, months, years. But I've kind of had to keep my circle really small for the past couple weeks just because I'm going through a lot and it's hard and it's my cross to bear. It's the thing that God has put in my life to deal with and I don't want to bring a lot of people into it. I'm so thankful to God for a strong family and the friends that God has put in my life to be there for me at this time.
Starting point is 00:30:19 I just wanted to share that my heart and my prayer is that the church would stay strong, that y'all would stick together because the church is God's people. It's not a man. It's not a person. It's not me. It's God's people, the bride of Christ. And there's a lot of really good people in the church that, um, that I just hope would continue on, press toward the calling, run your race, stay in courage,
Starting point is 00:31:02 stay in your word, keep worshiping. Like, I can't wait to worship again with everybody, but for now I'm just worshiping with me and Jesus to God. And I don't think God would be pleased with me if I just jumped right into missions and women's events and creative directing and worship leading and stuff. I think when your world is shook up, you need to take a pause. And I can only pray that more people will take a pause and get, I'm trying to get my priority straight right now. And that's making sure that my heart doesn't have any unforgiveness, bitterness, resentment, just forgiveness and hope for the future and peace. Because you can't put a price on peace from God.
Starting point is 00:32:10 So thank you for all your prayers and support. Know that I have to keep my circle really, really small. Right now, I'm used to having a really big circle, so it's hard because I want to reach out to everybody and tell you how much I love you and I miss you. This is the best way that I know how. So I love you all. I miss you. Thank you for your love and support over the last couple years. And some of you, you know, up to 18 years walking with me as my friends.
Starting point is 00:32:42 And for right now, I've just had to put everything on pause to get myself right. and I think God's happy with that. So keep praying for me. Thank you. And I love you. I'll be praying for you. March 22nd, Micah posts another video suggesting she was being abused physically and mentally.
Starting point is 00:33:03 She also says, quote, God hates divorce. But how does God feel about abuse? End quote. She also suggests that her husband forced her to take illegal drugs. I've had a lot of women that have reached out to me about situations of abuse. And I just want to tell you what a lot of people have told me. Male or female, it doesn't matter.
Starting point is 00:33:29 It doesn't matter what gender you are. Abuse is abuse. And you are the bride of Christ. And my Bible says that he took all the abuse you could. think of for you so that you didn't have to live that life of slavery and bondage and pain. So you don't have to stay in a abusive relationship, whether that's sexual, whether that's somebody forcing you to take illegal drugs or alcohol abuse or physical. psychological abuse making you think that this is all your fault or you're a bad mom or you're a bad wife or you're a bad husband or you're not giving it your all when you know you are
Starting point is 00:34:28 God hates divorce but why according to everybody I've asked and the scriptures that I've found it's because it hurts people but does abuse hurt people how do you think God feels about that April 16th, Micah files for spousal support. April 23rd, a hearing notice was sent out for Micah's request. A court date for June 5th was set. April 27th, Micah Miller, is found dead. End quote. That concludes Harvey's entire post and timeline.
Starting point is 00:35:07 Lastly, John Paul's background check shows multiple traffic violations, but then, more shocking, especially for a Christian past. a conviction for assault and battery. In 1999, years before meeting Micah, he allegedly hit a woman with his car twice, dragging her down the street. Micah had numerous memorial services, mainly because of the rift between her husband and her family,
Starting point is 00:35:34 and at Micah's funeral held at the solid rock church, footage of John Paul's sermon and eulogy made its way onto the web. I've been speaking for many years and for the first time. I don't really know exactly, you know, how to open or how to clucks or any of that. I'm just, you know, everyone knew how beautiful she was on the outside, you know, but only, I think, a spouse knows how beautiful that person is on the inside. I want to take a few minutes to just kind of tell some stories and just share some things about Micah that
Starting point is 00:36:18 he may have, that may, I don't know, shock you or help you get to know the more intimate side of her. She was beautiful on the outside. She had won so many beauty pageants, you know, when she was young, and
Starting point is 00:36:34 I won her trophies here where she won Saucas the idol. Let me tell, just to talk about how pretty she was on the outside. When she went to one school, she won the, you know, Miss, whatever the school was, beauty pageant. And then her family moved and she went to another school
Starting point is 00:36:50 and she won the Miss Beauty Pajon for that school too. It was the first time in that county's history that someone won, you know, both the Pajon's. But it really hadn't hit me. You know, I've gotten to spend, as Christians, of course, we know she's not here and in heaven and she's, you know, worshiping and enjoying and probably hadn't even had time to look down here yet.
Starting point is 00:37:15 But I got this. lay next to her body and it's been done with her body about four times this week and each time it still didn't hit me. I thought she was going to wake up, you know. I even tried to raise her from the dead one time this week. And that morning actually, I went to the mall later. She had bought me this dog tag and the chain broke. So I went to the mall to get it fixed. And I saw a female about 20, 30 feet in front of me. And she was wearing one of Micah's dresses. And she had this same tattoo Mika has on her arm and the exact same hair. And out of just instinct, I screamed, Micah! And the girl turned, and it was one of her sisters. And I thought I raised her from the
Starting point is 00:38:00 dad. She's alive, you know, but I can't wait to see her again one day. John Paul is shaking in the footage. Taking shots at Mika disguises compliments. She would make me turn my cell phone off and start turning the cell phone off and we would talk for hours and hours about, well, let me phrase it, She would talk for hours and hours and hours. And sometimes I would kind of not listen. I thought, oh, no, is she going to ask me a question? I'd get back in my mind to what we're talking about. And she would change subjects.
Starting point is 00:38:25 She'd go from one thing to the next. Just like her obituary, his actual compliments were about him and not his deceased wife. Imagine being married to that. I think that we can all understand the doubt surrounding Micah's death and why Micah's family and friends have such difficulty with the investigation's conclusion and the findings of Robson County Medical Examiner. Tell me what's, um, happen? Um, I'm about to kill myself and I just want my family to know where to find me. 303 p.m. Deputies with the sheriff's office head to Lumber River State Park.
Starting point is 00:39:25 Contact the park rangers and begin a search within 30 minutes. Specialized units searching for Micah from the air are deployed. 3.50 p.m. detectives are approached by someone fishing in the area who says they heard, crying followed by a gunshot. They also found a bag a few feet from the water's edge with Micah's ID inside of it. 4.23 p.m. A kayaker in the area calls 911 to report a body in the water. A perimeter is created to secure the area for an investigation. Within the hour, the chief of detective arrives and the medical examiner is called. 5.54 p.m. Crime scene investigation technician begins taking photos of the area, and they found Micah's car. Inside the car, investigate.
Starting point is 00:40:13 The police found a gun case in the passenger seat, an ammunition in the center console. The receipt for the weapon and her gas station stopper found. 7.11 p.m. A gun is discovered in the water at the park. Its serial number matches the case found in Micah's car. Tuesday, May 2, 2024, John Paul Miller sits down with WPDE for an interview.
Starting point is 00:40:39 During the interview, he mentioned some of the struggles he thought Micah had with mental health. So over the years since we've been married, you know, some people struggle with high blood pressure, some struggle with diabetes. Her struggle was with mental health. And whenever she stayed on her lithium, things were amazing. She'd come off sometimes and things were a little unusual. Per her doctors, they told her even just recently they had written that she was homicidal, suicidal. And she had struggled with suicide before.
Starting point is 00:41:10 Each time, you know, helped her through it, took her to her doctor, and we got through it. and everything was five. So this pastime was still a shock, an incredible shock. Sunday, May 5th, 2024. Friends and family rally outside Solid Rock Church. Some in Micah's family dispute the manner of death described by her estranged husband. This has to be at least looking to deeply.
Starting point is 00:41:35 There's got to be some accountability here because, yeah, it's a tragic life was lost, and it's not just as simple as somebody had some illness. A memorial service honoring her life followed the rally. Monday, May 6, 2024. The medical examiner releases Micah's cause of death. They conclude that she died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Micah's family meets with deputies about the investigation.
Starting point is 00:42:06 John Paul asked the Sheriff's office to meet with him in South Carolina. The investigation team said they did not plan to cross the state lines. I'm not going to judge. My gut failing, I just, I don't agree. The young lady was energetic. She was making plans. It just doesn't sound like someone committing suicide. It sounds like someone that's getting ready to live life again,
Starting point is 00:42:30 really starting her life over. And just going off what we've seen, what I witnessed, you know, the character and how treatment and how we were treated and talked to. And I just don't believe it for a minute. mentioned she was making plans like what type of plans um from what i understand she was had an appointment to get her hair done this week um she was looking forward to moving on she had filed paperwork and just served it two days prior so not not behavior somebody who's planning to take their own life not if i'm thinking about suicide i'm not worried about court dates and paperwork or my hair doesn't sound that to me
Starting point is 00:43:17 So basically, his sentiments echo what the family is saying. They're asking for a deep investigation. The public also continued to doubt the self-inflicted gunshot wound. And on May 7th, police released that 911 call you heard at the beginning of this episode. Here it is again. Robinson County 911. What's the address of your emergency? Hi.
Starting point is 00:43:43 Are you able to trace the location of my phone? Um Let me see You don't know where you're at And National Park What's the phone number you're calling me from? 843 655
Starting point is 00:44:05 5242 Um Where's the park located at? In Fair Bluff I have my location on I think on my phone find my phone is on
Starting point is 00:44:41 I just did my share my location okay I'm showing hold on one second I don't think you are in Robeson County are at Lumbra River State Park yeah that's where I am
Starting point is 00:45:31 okay tell me what's um happened um I'm about to kill myself and I just want my family to know where to find me. Okay, ma'am. Just listen to what I'm seeing, okay?
Starting point is 00:46:03 Let me make sure I got the exact location where you're at, okay? Just one minute. The Robson County Sheriff's Office released their own timeline of events as well, including the use of a drone to find Micah's car in the parking lot, a gun safe, an ammo left in her car, and a receipt, indicating that Micah herself purchased the gun earlier that day. According to police at 11.38 a.m., Micah's reing camera captures her leaving her residence in Myrtle Beach. And just 34 minutes later, she is captured on a security camera at Dick's pawn shop, buying a handgun and ammunition.
Starting point is 00:46:39 She spends 22 minutes at the pawn shop, leaving the store at 1234 and is captured on South Carolina Highway 501, traveling in her Honda Accord at 106 p.m. So Micah arrives at a grocery and grill in South Carolina, spending only eight minutes buying gas and a drink, leaving at 1.35 p.m. And from there, sightings of Micah and the police timeline goes black until the 911 call at 254 p.m. an hour and 20 minutes after she purchased gas. As far as witnesses go, police say that while responding to the 911 call inside the park, looking for Micah, a man told police that he found Micah's ID in an abandoned back, and that while fishing, he heard the cries of what sounded like a female,
Starting point is 00:47:27 followed by a gunshot, and with the crying suddenly stopping right after the gunshot. And another boater also confirmed the sound of crying. She had her license, her bank card. She had her keys in the bag. She had a little small Bible, all of a credit cards, a bank cords. A few receipts of some things. Johnny Jacobs says he retrieved the items from her black fanny pack here at the Lumber River State Park, the park where authorities say she took her own life.
Starting point is 00:47:59 On the same day officials announced the details of her dad, the family of Micah Miller, accompanied by a park ranger, ventured into the restricted area where Micah was tragically found, now seared into their memories in a silent tribute. Johnny Jacob says he remembers hearing cries around that same area. And after hearing a single gunshot, the cry stopped. I bought in there with my little boat. And maybe five minutes after getting into the slew, I heard a cry, a faint cry.
Starting point is 00:48:32 Heard it for maybe two or three minutes, and the crying stopped. Jacob says he was unable to see Miller at the time, but if she had been visible, he would have tried to help. He was out, if it would have been a person out there crying in the opening where I could see them, I'd have checked on them all day long. But as far as, yes, I mean, I would have, I just wished I could have went in there and checked on them. And as millions across the country continue to mourn this tragic death, Jacob says that it's his faith that will get him through. I'm just going to have faith in the Lord to get me through this.
Starting point is 00:49:08 because it's, it's, it's changing my life, actually. Now, News 13 doesn't typically report on suicides, but we started looking into the death of Micah Miller due to the enormous amount of attention and discussion created in our community. Due to the swirling rumors about her husband, John Paul, and accusations against John Paul, police also released this statement. Quote, there are many factors that we have reviewed that have occurred over an extended period of time that are probably related to the reason
Starting point is 00:49:43 for this investigation. But in the end, sadly, a tragic decision was made by Micah that ended her life, end quote. And John Paul's alibi, well, he was with the woman he was allegedly having an affair with in South Carolina at a sporting event. Evidence certainly does seem to point to a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Micah Miller's father says no way. Micah Miller's sister says not a chance. They say it is impossible to believe the official narrative of Micah's tragic and untimely death on April 27th. Suicide by self-inflicted gunshot. By now we have all seen the video of Micah buying the gun alone, and we've all heard the 911 call where she tells a dispatcher her plan.
Starting point is 00:50:31 But Micah's family says you just have to look at the video. This is Lumber River State Park in remote Robeson County in North Carolina. Micah's family went there in person, and they recorded this video, which was given to News Nation exclusively. And when they mentioned her estranged husband, Pastor John Paul Miller, they call him Jr. Take a listen. So over here would be where her remains were found down the river, and then all the way through this trail, all the way up here, whereas where her purse and her phone was found. This water is not moving. It's just stagnant water. It's not moving at all.
Starting point is 00:51:09 So presumably, how would her, how would she? There's no logical explanation with the, um, the theory of suicide does not add up to me because you're telling me her body floated all the way down this stagnant water and her blundas were all the way up here. We had to walk down a trail, a separate trail, climb through all this. mud and trees and fallen debris to even get to where her body was down the water. It's not like she could have, you know, left her belongings and walked down the water and then committed suicide down here and then somehow the bullets and everything stayed over
Starting point is 00:51:51 there. There's no logical. There's no logical explanation for this. The live round wasn't hit by the hammer, so it was ejected, which of course is not what you do if you know what you're doing with a weapon and Micah does. She's not going to eject a live round to fire it. already knows that it's ready to fire. So you do not believe she took her on life. I do not. I believe that it was all staged. I believe that the whole thing was premeditated. I believe that
Starting point is 00:52:18 the narrative was established by Junior all the way through. Before there was a release, like the day we were notified, he was already saying she did it, she did it. Why would you do that if you don't have all the information yet? Why would you not be grieving on grieving and just, you know, He has not shown any remorse, no grief. He shows nervousness. He shows guilt. He shows, you know, he is hiding something. But to Micah's father, Michael, he says the evidence points to more.
Starting point is 00:52:57 And in an interview with long crime, he explains his reasonings, including the knowledge of his daughter wanting a gun. She did want a gun, he says, but to protect herself. he says, for her own safety. After her tires were deflated and the tracking devices found, after she suffered so much harassment, she had allegedly told her dad she wanted a gun to protect herself.
Starting point is 00:53:19 We're struggling. You know, we're more united than ever as a family. You know, this is something that has really caused us to drop any little petty arguments or something and focus on what's it, important at this moment. So, you know,
Starting point is 00:53:36 We have grieved off and on, but we've also been in fight mode off and on as far as legally and, you know, and speaking out for Micah. Let's talk about that. Because, and I want to be very clear here, despite the findings from law enforcement that Micah had died by her own hand, that the sheriff's office saying John Paul was not in Robeson County when Micah died, do you believe there? is more to the story, correct? Yes.
Starting point is 00:54:10 There's a lot of details that they did not cover. And because it was equivalent in their eyes to previous self-inflicted wounds, I believe the law allows them to do less work. It does not prevent them from doing more work. And since there were multiple shell casings found and a live round found, it already didn't make much sense. So it would seem that they would automatically do a complete toxicology, not just blood alcohol, and a complete autopsy, which they did not do. And we're just devastated that they didn't because John Paul rushed the cremation process. So, and like, well, during the briefing, we pressed pretty hard for more information and such.
Starting point is 00:55:09 And the sheriff's office was trying to compress the briefing for us, and then they gave us a flash drive. It doesn't sound like Micah during the 911 call. She's so slow and so, you know, but then later there are, I haven't even heard them myself, honestly. I have someone who's going through all that for me and filtering the information because otherwise, the more information I get that sounds off, the more furious I get, and I need to be able to focus and control my emotions. But there is screaming going on and such, and that's not something indicative of a self-inflicted. You know, that sounds like a, you know, a fight. Michael says bruises found in his daughter's arms, along with scratches on her hands,
Starting point is 00:56:06 looked like defensive wounds. Multiple shell casings were found near Micah's body, implying the gun was fired more than once, and there was even a bullet that looked like it hit a tree. With the bruising on her hands and on our arm, scratches on her hands, indicating defensive wounds. So very frustrating.
Starting point is 00:56:29 When you say defensive wounds, is that something that was told to you by a medical professional when you talked about multiple casings there? Where did you get this information? And when you brought this information to law enforcement or mentioned to them, what did they say? Okay, as far as finding out, the Park Ranger took us back to the scene and pointed out, here's where she would have been standing. Here's where the shell casings and the live round were, which also doesn't make sense.
Starting point is 00:57:03 She knew how to use a weapon. She got the weapon for self-protection. She told me days beforehand, you know, dad, I really feel like I need a weapon for protection. And she knows how to use it. She's qualified. She's been through training. She's not going to charge the weapon and eject a live round. She already knows.
Starting point is 00:57:21 The first rule of gun use is knowing the condition of the gun. So we got the information about the shells. I mean, I did it directly from the park ranger. And then when we brought that up to law enforcement, they just said, well, they had no answer. They really just had no answer why, you know, any kind of, not even the speculation. They didn't even say, well, she probably did this, probably did that. They just said, this is what we have. And, I mean, there's, there is, what would it be an apparent bullet hole in a tree, which I have a picture of.
Starting point is 00:58:00 And they just didn't seem to put the effort forth. So we're very disappointed in that. And the defensive wounds, was that from the park ranger too? Okay. Yeah. I just, we looked at her hands during the viewing. We took pictures of her from the viewing. It was the worst day of my life.
Starting point is 00:58:23 And she had scratches on her arms and, I mean on her hand. And the coroner in training had the chief coroner with her. But she spoke out and said, well, maybe that's from when they retrieved her from the water. And I said, okay, of course, maybe. So, you know, was there blood in those scratches and such? They had no answer. Very disappointing. So I basically said the scratches indicate some type of scuffle or something because the area where she was, there was no trees or anything anyway.
Starting point is 00:59:02 There was no trees in the water. There was nothing there that would have scratched her hands the way they were. I mean, like this. So, you know, it indicated that there was, you know, some type of pressure. you know, that's where the bruise was. And just, you know. Her dad, Michael, also brings up how slow Micah's voice was during her 911 call, which is true. But Michael says it didn't sound like the daughter he knew at all.
Starting point is 00:59:34 And he wonders if AI was involved, something that John Paul has used before. She's a very happy, go-lucky, excitable person. and she it was too slow it was very slow it was metered it could have been done with an AI type of previous recordings where somebody would have had those words from her previously or you know whatever and so it just doesn't make sense that he wouldn't go up there do you have a theory as to what happened because authorities are saying you know they've talked like crossed out his alibi of where he was. Do you have a theory as to what happened? And again, I know this is sensitive. So if you don't want to share it, I understand. But do you have a theory as to what you believe happened?
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Starting point is 01:01:26 Okay, well, I'll share what we spoke to about with the authority, the sheriff in North Carolina. Also, as far as with his location, we've seen pictures of his district. truck, but it had dark windows? Was it even him in there? Where's pictures of him physically there? We haven't seen those. They've not been produced. If someone else has them, we would like to see them to prove that he was there. Because otherwise, it could be anybody in that truck. Micah had been tracked earlier that month. And it is possible, her dad says, that she was being tracked that day to the location that she was going, especially after she purchased the gun. So the theory would be that because she had multiple tracking devices put on her car previously,
Starting point is 01:02:16 that she was followed out to the park or forced to go out to the park. And they either follow her out there or she, which is, there's no reason for her to go out there. That's the main point as well. She's never been out there. We don't go up there. It's not a family spot. and she was off the trail enough into a park ranger only area that nobody knows about. And so the theory would be that she was either tracked, and then they said, well, we didn't find a tracking device.
Starting point is 01:02:53 Well, they could have removed it at the park. When the car was at the park, and then it was collected by the authorities, they didn't check for a tracker. which blew my mind. They said, oh, we have all the evidence and everything. We asked them, was there a tracker on her car? And they said, well, we didn't check. And we were flabbergasted. This happened over and over during that interview.
Starting point is 01:03:17 Why didn't you check that? We know that there was three or four trackers put on her vehicles. Why didn't you check to see if she was followed? They said, oh, there's no cameras, but we know she wasn't followed. Her car is just out here. And I said, well, there's no trackers. They said, no tracker. I said, well, they could have removed it after they did the deed.
Starting point is 01:03:37 So then Micah's mother, Angelita, she said, you know, she said, pretend this is, this is Micah's hand. And this is, and she asked me, grab this hand. And then she pulled it up, you know, and said, it looks like someone squeezed her hand and raised it up and shot. And their defensive wounds from it and such. And that's the general idea of our theory that somebody crushed her hand to hold a gun up to her head while she's fighting. Either them or someone else held her other hand or her other arm back because there's bruising on it from squeezing. And they forced it to look like that was self-inflicted. And a couple of rounds went off during the scuffle.
Starting point is 01:04:24 One ejected was live. And then it finally happened, the way they would want it to happen. and then dumped her in the water probably 40 meters away from where the shell casings in the gun was found. The water doesn't flow there. It's a slew. It's still. It just sinks. And it actually flows when it sinks, when it recesses, it goes the other direction from where she was found.
Starting point is 01:04:50 So her body, even if it was put in the water right there, would not have flowed the direction where she was found. It would flow the other way. So it would be possible that the incident occurred right there and the shell casings and then the gun was dumped in the water right there. And then she was carried farther 40 meters back into a little bit more secluded area where she was found. Now's the time for a great deal on a new Honda. It's time to take an adventure with rugged capability and commanding style. Check out the Honda Ridgeline, Pilot or CRV. For a limited time, well-qualified buyers can get a 3.9% APR on a 2025 pilot or a 2.9% APR on a 2025 Ridgeline or CRV.
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Starting point is 01:06:07 Subject to credit approved. Minimum monthly payments required. Minimum purchase required. See store for details. Micah's father's reasonings are certainly compelling. But at the very least, the evidence dug up by police, family, and sleuth points to severe abuse for years that Micah suffered at the hands of the person who should have protected her, her Christian pastor husband, John Paul, Miller. One of the most recent allegations of abuse was after Micah attempted one final time to file
Starting point is 01:06:36 for divorce and to start her life anew. It was April 24, just days before her death. And to punish her for taking this step that would allow Micah to take control of her life and to leave her abuser once and for all, John Paul used revenge porn, publicly posting nude photographs of his wife Micah on the internet. And after he took the photograph down, he emailed Micah. and I quote that email. I'm sorry for putting a picture of you on the internet. It was for less than one hour and immediately taken down. I was hurt that you were telling everyone horrible intimate details of my past sin,
Starting point is 01:07:12 and I just wanted to try and hurt you. Please forgive me. It was evil of me to do that, end quote. After this incident, Micah sent the following to her attorney just nine days before her death. Quote, since the day we became husband and wife, I have been abused in every way I can think of emotionally, sexually, spiritually, financially, and physically. He has harassed me physically and electronically with letters, phone calls, emails, and texts, hacking my personal Facebook, and impersonating me, using my stolen phone to send
Starting point is 01:07:45 texts and emails out to church members pretending to be me, texting friends and families saying that I am sleeping with teenagers from our church and showing up in person at places around town to having installed three different tracking devices on my vehicle, end quote. And on Tuesday, May 14th, a week after the Robson County Sheriff's Office concluded their investigation, releasing their timeline and statement saying that Micah took her own life, to the surprise of many, they released another statement. Quote, the Robson County Sheriff Office has been in contact with the United States Attorney Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation in South Carolina since the early stages of the Micah Miller investigation.
Starting point is 01:08:25 based on the information gathered during the investigation and jurisdiction reason. The Sheriff's Office has requested the assistance of both agencies. No other information will be released at this time, and anyone with information pertaining to the Miller investigation in South Carolina is asked to contact the Columbia, South Carolina FBI office. Micah's family responded, quote, The family is grateful for everything everyone has done to help find justice for Micah. They are aware that the Ropes in County Sheriff's Office released a statement about the FBI being involved.
Starting point is 01:09:00 However, the family has no personal knowledge of the nature of any FBI investigation and therefore has no comment. Hashtag, Justice for Micah. John Paul Miller, through his attorney, released a statement and it reads as follows. Quote, the law offices of Russell belong on behalf of our client, Pastor John Paul Miller, issues this press release to clarify the circumstances surrounding the tragic passing of Micah Miller. Following the untimely death of Micah Miller, unfounded rumors and false accusations began circulating on social media and in various media outlets suggesting Pastor Miller's involvement in her demise. This created a buzz, causing local and national media outlets to begin proliferating these falsehoods on a mammoth proportion, and our client refutes any report that suggests he ever abused his wife.
Starting point is 01:09:47 Recent reports claim that Pastor Miller groomed his wife from the age of 10 years old, and it couldn't be farther from the truth. She moved to Myrtle Beach at the age of 15, was married to another man at the age of 18 and divorced at the age of 21. It has come to light that Micah Miller struggled with mental illness, specifically bipolar disorder, which, when not properly managed, led to paranoid episodes and self-destructive behavior. Again, Micah suffered from mental illness and some reports made by her in the recent past are nonsensical. The unfortunate reality underscores the importance of destigmatizing mental health issues and ensuring those affected receive appropriate support and treatment.
Starting point is 01:10:23 We wish to emphasize that after a thorough investigation by the Robson County North Carolina Sheriff's Office, it has been conclusively determined that Ms. Miller's death was the result of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. This finding completely exonerates Pastor Miller of any wrongdoing. These baseless claims and false reporting have caused immense distress and harm to Pastor Miller and his family and needs to stop immediately. We hereby demand that all individuals and media outlets cease and desist from perpetuating these harmful falsehoods. Any further dissemination of defamatory and libel statements will be met with
Starting point is 01:10:57 legal action and a complete inventory of these defamatory statements has been conducted. Those that have, to date, violated Pastor Miller's right to live in peace and to mourn the passing of his wife respectfully. They will be held accountable. Those that choose to allow any previously posted or published fault statements about Pastor Miller to remain in the public domain can expect to be served with civil litigation against them individually and when appropriate. Their media organizations and supervisors can expect the same. We all have the right to free speech, but not that speech, which is false and harmful to the subject of that speech.
Starting point is 01:11:32 Many media outlets have reached out to Pastor Miller for comment, and we will direct all further requests for comment be directed to Attorney Russell B. Long at his Myrtle Beach office. We appreciate your cooperation in respecting Pastor Miller's right to grieve and mourn his wife's passing without undue interference or slander. Most recently, though, John Paul's ex-wife, Alison Williams, filed a motion seeking full custody of their two teenage children. Their other kids are adults now. And in the filing, Allison includes emails, text messages, and a voicemail showing Micah had reached out to her for help getting away from John Paul. According to the filing,
Starting point is 01:12:13 Allison's were under oath the following. So Allison is plaintiff. John Paul or JP is defendant. Quote, one, the defendant has exhibited increasingly unstable behaviors, failed to provide a safe and stable environment for the minor children during his periods of visitation, and has both exposed and involved the minor children in incidents of domestic dispute and discord, which have been traumatic to the minor children and not in their best interest. Two, the defendant has exhibited behaviors that are erratic and irrational.
Starting point is 01:12:44 At times he has foregone his designated periods of visitation based upon his own assertions of not being mentally well enough for the children to be in his care. The defendant has failed to seek treatment for his deviant sexual addictions and behaviors, which he admittedly confessed to both plaintiff and former elders of his church. Based upon information and belief, defendant has continued to engage in deviant sexual behaviors and has exposed the party's minor children to an immoral and unsafe environment. 4. J.P. has exposed the minor children to his adulterous misconduct, with his paramour and repeatedly involved both the plaintiff and the minor children in his marital difficulties.
Starting point is 01:13:24 The current wife of defendant Micah Miller was recently found deceased, the tragic facts and circumstances of which have become a major focus of social media, local and national news. against the objections of plaintiff, the defendant has discussed this matter with the children, and plaintiffs believe, given the totality of the circumstances, placing the children in the care of defendant, would place them in imminent danger
Starting point is 01:13:48 and not be in their best interest. Plaintiff further alleges that prior to the death of Micah Miller, she confided in plaintiff, sharing intimate details regarding the behaviors of defendant and concerns regarding the safety of the minor children while in the care of defendant. Plaintiff contends that until the child, time of Micah Miller's death, she provided a safety net for the children during their periods
Starting point is 01:14:09 of visitation with defendant and based upon her recent tragic death. That is no longer possible. Based upon the foregoing, plaintiff alleges that until such time as the defendant undergoes a full and complete psychological and parental fitness evaluation and follows all recommendations resulting therefrom and a guardian ad litem can be appointed to investigate this matter and protect the best interest of the minor children. Defendant's periods of visitation and contact with the minor children should be suspended to protect the best interests of the minor children and request that the court issue in order granting this relief permanently. As supplemental documentation, Allison also swore to the following.
Starting point is 01:14:52 Are you ready for this? Quote, in 2015, J.P. was the pastor of Solid Rock Ministries, and I served as his assistant to pastoral duties. We separated after I learned J.P. was having an adult affair with our former nanny, Micah Miller, who joined our church at the age of 15, was married to J.P.'s best friend who was also in our church staff, and serving as our church worship leader at the time of their affair. J.P. told me that in addition to his affair with Micah, he had employed prostitutes, had been sexually inappropriate with several underage females members of our church. He blamed his immoral sexual behaviors on the sexual abuse he experienced for years by his father, Wayne Miller. The church requested that JP enroll in an extensive sexual addiction program.
Starting point is 01:15:42 However, despite him promising me that he would to my knowledge, that never happened. The affair between JP and Micah tore our personal and church family apart and caused an unimaginable amount of pain and discord in our lives of so many innocent people who trusted and believed in JP. At the time the church learned about JP's affair with Micah, the church was operating under the belief the old bylaws of our church had been amended and that we were operating under new bylaws, JP represented and had been put in place that required the formation of a board of council members to approve any major decisions regarding to the church, including financial expenditures. When the council voted to have JP temporarily stepped down for the head pastor
Starting point is 01:16:24 position, so he could seek treatment for his self-reported sexual addictions and focus on his restoration, instead of following the direction of our church leaders, J.P. held a median and informed the council the new bylaws were invalid, and therefore pursuant to the old bylaws, he had 100% decision-making authority. That was the first time members of our church had an opportunity to see JP for who in reality he was, and they became gravely concerned about his integrity and the financial structure of the church. As a result, almost our entire congregation left the church, and J.B. began his quest in recruiting new members and operate Solid Rock ministries solely at his direction. After JP informed me that he had been inappropriate with minor female members of our church
Starting point is 01:17:08 and disclosed to me the identity of these girls, I immediately contacted them to encourage them to come forward. And although they each shared with me detailed accounts of what JP did to them, they were too afraid to make an police report or testify in court. This is so heartbreaking to read. When I learned that they were fearful to report JP, I went to the police department for the purpose of making and requesting an investigation. However, I was in essence told by police officials that nobody would believe me because JP was a well-known pastor and we were in the middle of a divorce. Without the testimony of the victims, there was little else I could do to prove what JP had done and to ensure that he was held accountable.
Starting point is 01:17:54 I began to realize the power J.P. seemed to have over leaders and officials in our community, and based upon having limited proof, there was no way for me to ensure that J.P. was held accountable and prevented from continuing to victimize innocent people. Given the circumstances, I decided the best way for me to protect our children was to reach an agreement with J.P. that contained terms, I believe, would ensure their safety and encouraged him to seek treatment. And to that end, J.P. had periodic periods of visitation with our children. However, we agreed, J.P.'s visitation with our daughter, who was subject to this action, would be restricted to solely daytime periods of visitation. And following my divorce from J.P., he then married Micah Miller.
Starting point is 01:18:37 And prior to my knowledge of J.P.'s sexual relationship with Micah during our marriage, both she and her husband at the time, Jeremy, became very close to our family. Micah did not have a close relationship with her mother, and to some degree, I took her under my wing as an older daughter. I taught her to drive. I took her to get her drive. I took her to get her driver's license, I allowed her to care for our children, shared family meal times together in our home, provided her guidance and advice as she began working in the church. Despite the initial destruction caused by J.P.'s infidelity for several years, there was a part of me that was relieved to know that Micah would be present in the home when J.P. had periods of visitation with our
Starting point is 01:19:14 children, and I viewed her as a safety net for my children. Although our children continue to struggle with the anger and disappointment they felt toward their father, often refusing to share a visitation periods with him for a couple of years, things appear to not be quite as tumultuous. But in 2021 to 22, things gradually began to change to the detriment of our children and have escalated to the severity of where things are today. J.P. and Micah began having severe marital difficulties, and our children were placed directly in the middle of this discord. J.P. would preach sermons on the Sundays our children were with him and present in the congregation, disparaging Micah and indicating that she had mental health issues and eventually putting her in a mental hospital.
Starting point is 01:19:57 The children were subjected to J.P. calling Micah crazy one day, and then her being back in the home at their next visit with their father assuring them that she was fine. They never knew what to expect and the intense unpredictability and marital discord between J.P. and Micah negatively impacted them all. On one occasion, while picking up our daughter, I observed holes in their walls, hinges off their doors, and pieces of paper taped to the wall with negative. negative affirmations about Micah. J.P. told me and our children that Micah was delusional and speaking different languages and seeing things that were not there. J.P. agreed that it was not safe for our children to be in his home and for periods at my request did not insist that they
Starting point is 01:20:42 stay with him overnight. He would pick them up from school and bring them home after taking them to dinner. J.P. began spending time with his now-Parmour Susie, who was the mother of one of the boys to play soccer on our son's soccer team. J.P. began using our son to facilitate times he could spend with Susie, which our children were well aware of, and their friends talked about it, and it caused them a tremendous amount of embarrassment. And when I learned JP was exposing our children to yet another one of his adulterous affairs, I confronted JP and Susie and told him not to let it happen again. J.P. called me the day Susie's husband died in an alleged drowning accident, extremely upset, asking me to pray, which was,
Starting point is 01:21:22 incredibly bizarre based upon information and belief that just two weeks prior to this incident, Susie's husband had confronted JP and asked him to leave his wife and children alone. It is chilling to know that the spouses of both Susie and JP are now dead from tragic events. It was around this time JP's mental health seemed to be really spiraling out of control. And he began acting even more bizarre. He informed me that he was getting into buying guns and shooting and had purchased a gun safe for his home. As a convicted felon, he is not allowed to have weapons. However, he managed to get a police chief from the church to assist with expunging his record. Further, he was given a special police badge that
Starting point is 01:22:07 says, pastor, to utilize if he ever gets pulled over, so they will let him go. With a constant discord between J.P. and Mika and J.P.'s own self-reported mental health struggles, the thought of JP having access to guns in his home terrified me for the safety of our children. It was about this time that J.P. began declining to pick up our children for visitation informing me that his mental health was not well enough for him to share time with them. Of course, given the circumstances, I would have refused to let them go. However, having it be J.P.'s idea made it far easier and safer and prevented the necessity of filing a legal action with the court. One evening, J.P. informed me that Micah had a breakdown and was on her way to my house and requested me to hold her when she arrived because he
Starting point is 01:22:53 had police coming. It was my understanding that Micah was trying to get away from JP because he was trying to have her committed again. Our children were at home and once again subjected to this severe discord. Micah began calling me for advice on how to free herself from JP and for guidance as to counselors and people to assist her. I prayed with Micah and did all I could to provide her with sound advice and guidance. Micah shared information with me about the things my children were exposed to while in the care of JP and she warned me that my children were in danger while in JP's care. I have several recordings and text messages that verify this information and it causes me tremendous concern about the safety and welfare of our children while in the care of JP, especially now that
Starting point is 01:23:39 Micah is no longer present. I was married to JP for 16 years. Although my story and what I live through with JP is different in some ways, many of the details shared with me by Micah are so similar to my own experiences with JP that I know she was being truthful. Based upon information and belief, JP's mental health and deviant sexual addictions have only worsened since the time we were married and I do not believe our children are safe in his care. Since Micah's death, I have requested did they JP not see our children? Initially, I was okay with phone calls and text messages. However, when recently texting with them, JP has inappropriately discussed the current state of events with them, sharing his plans of suing everyone and being a millionaire. Our children do not need to be
Starting point is 01:24:25 subjected to any discussion about this current situation, as I am doing all I can to prevent them from being exposed to this massive social media and national coverage. For their privacy and protection, I have refrained from making any public statements or comments. Our children are highly upset and do not wish to have contact with their father, which at this time I strongly believe is in their best interest. My goal is not to keep our children from their father permanently, but until such time as he can undergo adequate psychological testing, follow all recommendations to ensure his mental stability and ensure contact with their father is in their best interest. Currently, JP is being threatened and followed on social media by people from all over the world, placing our children
Starting point is 01:25:09 in that situation and subjecting them to social media coverage or involvement is simply not in their best interest. End quote. Well, the judge granted Allison's emergency request, citing the, quote, imminent risk and threat of harm, and quote, for the children. Hidden true crime will be following this case. It is not over. and Dr. John will be breaking down his thoughts on Micah's death in the next few days.
Starting point is 01:25:37 He has a lot to say. Until then, it feels there is only one right way to end this episode. And that is with Micah's own words, profound words, that she eloquently shared in a public video left on her Facebook profile on March 22nd, 2004, a month before her promising life was cut short. It's a video that she left with this. caption. Quote, please share this with anyone struggling to leave a dangerous situation if they think that God will be mad at them for leaving. Hashtag abuse awareness. Hashtag God loves you.
Starting point is 01:26:17 End quote. In memory of Micah, we honor her request to share her message. So today my heart's a little heavy. I've had a lot of women that have reached out to me about situations of abuse and I just want to tell you what a lot of people have told me lately and reminded me because I think I forgot I knew but I for I pushed it in the back of my head just because of my situation but you are the bride of Christ before anybody else's bride male or female, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter what gender you are. Abuse is abuse.
Starting point is 01:27:04 And you are the bride of Christ. And my Bible says that he took all the abuse you could think of for you so that you didn't have to live that life of slavery and bondage and pain. Jesus took it all for you. So you don't have to stay in a abusive relationship, whether that's sexual, whether that's somebody forcing you to take illegal drugs or alcohol abuse or physical abuse, psychological abuse, making you think that this is all your fault or you're a bad mom or you're about wife or you're a bad husband or you're not giving it your all when you know you are
Starting point is 01:28:02 god hates divorce but why according to everybody i've asked and the scriptures that i've found it's because it hurts people but does abuse hurt people how do you think god feels about that so i want to remind you like a bunch of people have been reminding me lately that I'm God's pride first and even an earthly spouse who's a good spouse when they know that their bride is being hurt just imagine what an earthly spouse does what do you think your heavenly spouse does when you're the bride of Christ and he sees his bride going through abuse and hurt what you think he thinks about that. So, encouragement in all this is
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