Murdaugh Murders Podcast - TSP #132 - Feds In SC Bring Good Heat On The Good Ole Boys: JP Miller Arraigned + Pedo RJ May Sentenced

Episode Date: January 15, 2026

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell are celebrating two big moments of accountability for two of the worst men in South Carolina… On Monday, “Pastor” Churchy Business bro John-Paul Miller had to face a federal judge in Florence to plead “not guilty” to a single felony charge of cyberstalking his wife Mica Francis for a year and a half before her death … as well as a single count of lying to federal investigators about the extent of his stalking.  The judge set JP’s unsecured bond at $100K and ordered him to be tracked via a GPS ankle monitor because he’s considered a flight risk.  Two days after JP’s hearing, Mandy and Liz were keeping tabs on another federal case involving one of South Carolina's worst men, former statehouse representative and admitted pedophile RJ May, who was sentenced to 17 and a half years for distributing child sexual abuse materials. It was a great week for justice.  🦈 Let’s Dive in  🥽   Episode Links Oral Arguments for Alex Murdaugh’s Murder Conviction - Feb 11, 2026 📅 Sea of Purple Facebook Post - Jan 12, 2026 🌊💜 SC H3537 “South Carolina Prenatal Equal Protection Act Info 🌐 Stay Tuned, Stay Pesky and Stay in the Sunlight...☀️ Learn more about LUNASHARK Premium Membership at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lunashark.supercast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to get bonus episodes like our Premium Dives, Wherever It Leads..., Girl Talk, and Soundbites that help you Stay Pesky and Stay in the Sunlight ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Support Our Show, Sponsors and Mission: https://lunasharkmedia.com/support/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Quince⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Hungry Root⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Bombas⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/4cJ0eVn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ *** ALERT: If you ever notice audio errors in the pod, email ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[e-mail]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and we'll send fun merch to the first listener that finds something that needs to be adjusted! *** For current & accurate updates: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lunashark.supercast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram.com/mandy_matney⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠   |   ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram.com/elizfarrell⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠   ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠bsky.app/profile/mandy-matney.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠bsky.app/profile/elizfarrell.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TrueSunlight.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook.com/TrueSunlightPodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram.com/TrueSunlightPod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠youtube.com/@LunaSharkMedia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tiktok.com/@lunasharkmedia⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hey there, E.B. here. Your faithful Cup of Justice co-host. I am so excited to tell you about my new book, Anything But Bland. In this memoir, I share stories about my childhood, marked by bullying, my father's job loss, and the indomitable spirit that propelled me into the law and ultimately international recognition during the Alex Murdole murder trial. I believe in certain life principles that have helped me and helped others achieve success. From the power of organization and a sense of urgency to the importance of truth, leadership, and resilience. With vivid recollection from challenges and triumphs framing each chapter, success isn't about luck. It's earned through skill and hard work. Please visit theericblan.com to learn more about the book, Anything But Bland is a manifesto for those seeking triumph over adversity

and a guide for anyone aspiring to reach their full potential. don't know how I'm saying this right now, but I am actually grateful for the U.S. Attorney's Office in South Carolina this week, because honestly, I'm always skeptical of the government. But after their prosecutors brought the heat to J.P. Miller in court as they made a big step toward justice for Micah, and after their other prosecutors secured a hefty sentence for convicted pedophile R.J. May, it was a pretty good week for justice in South Carolina. My name is Mandy Matney and this is True Sunlight, a podcast exposing crime and corruption, previously known as the Murdoch Murders podcast. True Sunlight is a Luna Shark production

written with journalist Liz Farrell. So, we have a big year ahead at Lunashark. It looks like J.P. Miller's case will be headed to trial in the next few months and we'll talk more about that in a minute. But February will be a big month in Elyke Murdoch's appeal for his conduct conviction in the double homicide of Maggie and Paul Murdoch. On February 11th, the South Carolina Supreme Court will hear Ellick Murdoch's appeal, basically claiming that he did not get a fair trial. Last week, Ehrlich Murdoch's attorney Dick Harputlian, who has been real busy recently on a hilarious social media marketing adventure to promote his serial killer book,

filed a motion to supplement Ehrlich Murdoch's appeal. And surprise, surprise. He wants clerk of court Becky Hill's recent guilty plea. You know, when she was sentenced to zero prison time for misconduct in office, obstruction of justice, and perjury. He wants that to bolster Elyke's appeal to get a new trial. Dick wants to include Becky's indictment, sentencing sheet, and transcript of her guilty plea hearing. But here is the problem.

As we've said before many, many times, the court found no evidence that Becky ever tampered with the jury. in Alec Murdoch's case. The court found that the jury came to their guilty conclusion on their own, which, again, is a big problem for Alex's appeal. Regardless, we fully expect shenanigans to take place in Alec Murdoch's case leading up to the hearing, so be sure to follow us on social media and on Lunas Shark Premium for all the updates. And speaking of Lunas Shark Premium, thanks to our members and loyal listeners. We were able to send Liz Farrell to Florence, South Carolina this week

to cover the highly anticipated J.P. Jubilee, aka J.P. Miller's first hearing in federal court where he was arraigned on two federal charges related to the death of his wife, Micah. I'll have Liz take it from here. Well, the J.P. Jubilee did not disappoint. And I say this as someone who might just be the least entertained, most cynical, most chronically bored by human behavior among all of us. And I seriously don't think I've ever said anything like this before in my life. But JP's 15-minute hearing in federal court Monday was worth disrupting my weekend, putting Newberry in a kennel, making a 16-hour round trip to yet another South Carolina city visibly ruined by good old boy crimes, spending hundreds of dollars on a probably haunted hotel.

room with no hot water and during a night of blaring oldies music that seemed to be funneled directly from the streets of downtown Florence and into my pillows and sitting in a federal courtroom without my phone for hours which is usually my personal hell. The funniest thing to me about this is that the thing that made it worth it is actually something I didn't even see despite being in the courtroom. It's something I found out about right after but I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's start at the beginning. The beginning for me is is to tell you how irritating it is to search on J.P.'s case for updates and pacer. Because J.P.'s first name isn't John Paul the hyphenate. It's just John. He's John Miller, which makes him one of literal thousands in that database. Putting in his middle name, which is

Paul, duh, helps out. But I like a good Russell, Lucius Lafitte, or a Corey Howardton Fleming to search on where the case just comes right up. Even if Robert John May narrows things down quite a bit. But no, Dirty John, middle name Paul Miller, forces me to narrow the search even further to just South Carolina. And it's just so appropriate that even searching for Dirty J.P.'s case in the federal database is as annoying as he is. This is all just to say that right up until I left my phone in the car, I was checking Pacer repeatedly, totally expecting to see some nonsense from JP that would cause the hearing to be continued to another day. I honestly thought he'd pull some in-the-grass crying move the night before, something that would get him checked in

into a hospital and maybe position him as a broken and lost soul with untreated problems that caused him to allegedly stalk Micah and allegedly lie to the feds about it. But now, the guy actually showed up to court. Real quick, let's talk about the sermon he gave the day before his hearing to the group of people he still has hoodwinked at Mercy Church. So excited about what God's going to do. So excited. I don't know how he's going to do it, but I know he's going to do it.

Have a lot of faith in him. and I've seen him moving my life in the past, and I know he's a good God, so he's doing great things. Susie and I, we have a little booklet, and we keep all the miracles that God's done in our life through all this, like supernatural things,

things that we just can't explain. There's about, I'm about the number 22, I think, is where we're at. And stuff that God's on. And one day I'm going to share them all with you, and you'll get to see how cool it is. Just amazing things. Just, I'll give you one out of the 22. Just one out of the 22.

and we're not recording yet, but one out of the 22 is I have my favorite Bible that I normally use this next to my bed, and I found, and I don't know if you ever read lamentations. I don't read lamentations, right? So probably a woman, but anyway, and so, I don't know. And so I was reading lamentations, and I came to this passage that says, Lord, you are my lawyer, plead my case, you know, you're the judge, prove me right, show my enemies they're wrong, something to that effect. And I thought that's so amazing.

And so the version of that Bible is an NLT version, but it was like it's a Bible from the early 90s or something. And so I thought, well, that's cool. So I started to read other Bibles. And there's not one other Bible in the world, not even the same translation where it says, Lord be my lawyer. Only my Bible. I searched about 27 translations. I searched other Bibles of the same NLT of my Bible.

And every other Bible just says, Lord, defend me. Mine is the only one I found in the whole world that says, Lord, you are my lawyer. And out of every script in the Bible, that's the one I turned to, is the limitations. So I thought that was great. Okay. First, that's the Lord of your... So, he thinks God is going to help him get out of being held accountable,

which is an irony beyond all ironies. But mostly, I want to note this about the sermon. This man is not only a compulsive liar, in my opinion. He lives in a fantasy world completely written and created by him. J.P. says no other Bible has this translation. translation of Lord, you are my lawyer, as if God had sent a special message to JP by scrambling around letters and words and forming a new passage only seen in the Bible that JP has. It took Lunashark researcher and reporter Beth Braden two minutes to prove that, Lord,

you are my lawyer, is, well, first, it's not a translation. It's a paraphrase, and it's contained in the living Bible. So JP wasn't even quoting the right Bible and also lying that out of the 27 translations he was unable to find, an example of that phrase being used in any of the 27 translations he searched. Anyway, if God is JP's lawyer, then he has a fool for a client. Okay, I want to set the scene for you. The way federal court's seating works is that it's first come, first seated. By 1.30 p.m. a whole hour before the hearing was set to start, the courtroom was packed, and there did not appear to be a single J.P. Miller's supporter there. In fact, the lobby of the courthouse was already filled with people waiting for the courtroom to open at noon.

One attendee told me that someone in courthouse security said to her that they had to bring in 52 U.S. marshals for this hearing, which I wasn't able to verify, but if that is true, you have to wonder why. Had JP's attorneys tried to play up some sort of persecution narrative that JP was targeted by dozens of, quote, heavy set blonde women wearing sweaters and no makeup? and therefore law enforcement needed to be increased? The same attendee, by the way, did a head count and noted, there are seven men here and the balance is all women. She said, what does that tell you? There are a whole lot of women who are fed up. Truer words have not been spoken.

Back to the security, though. Every door in that courtroom had at least two U.S. marshals or courthouse security guards posted at them. That said, the gallery of the courtroom was a sea of purple, the color that symbolizes support for domestic violence awareness. And J.P. had to walk through that sea like a big, mopey Moses to get to his seat at the front of the courtroom. He showed up in the room about seven or so minutes before the hearing was set to start. And going back to that funny thing that I said made it worth it for me to attend this hearing,

J.P. walked into the courtroom holding a Bible to his chest. According to several people in the room who were able to see him head on when he walked into the courtroom. It's funny because the judge wasn't there to witness this holy man moment. I mean, one has to assume that J.P. did that performative little walk with his Bible at his chest for the benefit of the judge because no one, and I mean no one else in that room, would have been swayed by J.P.'s attempt at piousness. No one else in that room could have been his intended audience. And again, that's just funny. It was a totally wasted effort because by the time the judge entered the room, a 229, very prompt, the Bible was on the table and likely not visible from the bench. Also notable, J.P.'s attorneys, the ones that aren't God, didn't really identify J.P. as a man of God,

or church leader, or man of the cloth, and the book, or friend of Jesus, or even a client of God. The hearings started with J.P. waiving his right to have his charges read to him, the single charge of cyber-stocking Micah for a year and a half, and the single charge of lying to federal investigators about it. Oh, I should mention this. The prosecution showed up in force. At the table was leading to prosecutor L. Klein and prosecutor Ben Garner. Behind them were more staff from the U.S. Attorney's Office and in the jury box were two rows of presumably more prosecutors along with federal investigators. L. Klein told federal magistrate Judge Thomas Rogers III that the government was recommending a high unsecured bond for

JP, meaning a bond that JP wouldn't have to pay upfront but would be required to pay if he violated the terms of his release which include showing up to future court appearances. And this is the part that really set the JP Jubilee on fire for me and I'm sure many others. They recommended that he be assigned a GPS monitor. El Klein said the words we are all hoping she would that JP is a flight risk and a danger to others, specifically Micah's family and other potential witnesses. Now this is what made it really, really worth it to be in that courtroom. In the same way it did the day Mandy and I were in the room for Russell Lefeet's indictment and for the first time heard that Alec Murdoch's law firm had confronted Elek about the 700,000 plus he had stolen from the firm

on the same day of the murders. Here is the list of reasons that prosecutor L. Klein, whose law background focused on domestic violence victim advocacy, gave the court as to why J.P. Miller needed to have that GPS monitor. Number one, he has access to a private plane and he has used said plane in the past. Remember that little plane that Solid Rock Church purchased a few weeks after Micah's death on May 9th, 2024, the one that was parked in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, and had been ever since April 24, well, it is currently parked at the airfield in North Myrtle Beach. About a year ago, it made its only out-of-the-country journey when it flew to the Caribbean before flying back to Myrtle Beach a few days later.

It is not clear how often JP was a passenger on that flight, but in September 24, the plane became registered to F-E-R-X-L-C, which is an entity that filed with the South Carolina Secretary of State's office in August, 24, by JP's close associate, Mark Kaufman, you know, the pianist, who was JP's only friend for a while, according to JP. Number 2. In November, 2014, when federal investigators raided J.P.'s house, they found a safe containing a significant amount of cash, silver coins, and silver bars? I still can't wrap my head around that one. It's like second-place shady behavior, which is oddly giving me second-hand embarrassment for him. Also, the safe contained baseball cards, which no surprise there. Thoughts and prayers to the former members of Solid Rock Church who paid for the silver bars and baseball cards and whatever stacks of cash JP was keeping on hand. At any rate, the prosecutor's point was that everything in the safe was a liquid or liquefiable asset.

Number three, L also pointed out that JP currently has access to large amounts of cash because of his current churchy business endeavors. Number four, J.P. Miller has already threatened to release intimate details about a witness who spoke to investigators. Number 5. JP shared the names, addresses, and phone numbers of Micah's family members with a third party over an app meant to keep communications anonymous. The implication there was that JP was how now preparing this third party to contact or harass the Francis family. Number 6.

Additionally, the prosecution said there was communication from JP. saying that he was going to deal with one of Micah's family members, quote, face to face. Number seven, JP was charged with assault while all of this investigation was ongoing. And number eight, JP was seen by investigators, quote, hiding cars in an evasive move. One thing I want to note, by the way, because this has been on my mind since the hearing, is that when J.P. Miller's house was raided in November 2024, he had already met with federal investigators at that point, according to the indictment. His lying to federal investigators' charge is connected to an October 17th, 2024 meeting with them, which means that when his house was

raided, J.P. already knew he was under a serious microscope. So it's a fair question to ask whether the contents of that safe were reduced and possibly curated specifically for this investigation. The prosecution made it a point to inform the court that even if JP's personal savings and checking accounts show low balances, that does not honestly represent his true access to money. Anyway, JP's attorneys, not God, told the court that they were cool with an unsecured bond, but not a high one, and that they didn't think a GPS monitor was necessary because JP, and this is pretty much the best they could come up with for the judge, is a 46-year-old man who grew up in Myrtle Beans. and has family there. It's like Elyke Murdoch only being able to describe Maggie as a woman, a wife, and a mother. Except in Ehrlich's case, that's because he only cared about himself and likely never pondered who Maggie was beyond her use to him. In J.P.'s case, he is paying two highly experienced attorneys to represent who he is to the court, and, I mean, they nailed it. They

really did. Because J.P.'s age and location are literally the only two facts you can say about that don't contain some damning side note or need for further explanation or are part of a dishonest cover story. Anyway, bottom line. The JP Jubilee ended with the judge setting JP's bond at an unsecured $100,000 with conditions, encoding GPS monitoring that JP will have to pay for. No travel outside of South Carolina for JP. A surrender of JP's passport. A warning not to break the law while out on bond.

a requirement that JP report minor infractions of the law to the probation office for, as the judge said, even something is minor as a jaywalking ticket or a speeding ticket, which we all know is a likelihood for JP given his driving history. JP is not allowed to possess firearms before trial or drink alcohol to excess or take any illegal drugs. He must submit to drug tests if the probation office requires that of him, and attend alcohol and drug treatment programs if probation things. it's necessary. After the hearing was over, everyone rushed out of the courthouse to reunite with their phones and the dozens of purple-attired protesters brought out signs with Micah's picture

on them and the phrase Micah knew everything, a reference to the suspicions Micah had about JP and the church in the lead-up to her death, i.e., the paper trail she referenced. There was a release of purple, biodegradable, balloons in the parking lot, which marked a beautiful moment because, again, this day would not have come without the hard work of the protesters and their endurance through the stress and anguish that JP put them through. Or rather, the stress and anguish that the ORI County Magister Court and ORI County Police Department allowed JP to put them through by, in our opinions, abusing the justice and legal systems in a retaliation plan that could only have been conceived at whatever is the opposite of a brainstorming session.

One more final thought for y'all. J.P. Miller, the menace of Myrtle Beach, is being tracked in real time. He doesn't have a curfew. He doesn't have restrictions by not traveling outside South Carolina's borders. But his every move is being monitored. It's actually starting to feel like justice for Micah. We will be right back. Okay, so let's talk about another one of the most shameful men in South Carolina,

who was also in federal court this week. On Tuesday, former South Carolina Republican legislator and admitted distributor of child sex abuse materials, R.J. May, was sentenced to 210 months in prison. That is 17 and a half years. Two and a half years below the maximum sentence for just one of the five charges R.J. pleaded guilty to in September. Days before R.J. May was sentenced, U.S. Attorney Brian Sterling, along with assistant attorneys Elliot B. Daniels and J. Scott Matthews and DOJ trial attorney Austin B. Berry submitted a scathing 32-page sentencing memorandum on behalf of the U.S. government in reference to RJ May. You know how I said this week on Cup of Justice that the federal government can be really good and really bad at the same time? Well, this memo is a shining example of good government,

outlining the horrific crimes RJ May has admitted to and asking Judge Curry to sentence RJ May to 20 years in prison, followed by a lifetime of supervision and $73,000 in restitution. Before we dive into the document, we have to say that this is some of the most disturbing material that we have ever covered. Listener discretion is advised. Also, while you are listening to all of the horrific evidence against RJ May, most of which he has actually admitted to, keep in mind that three days after the U.S. Attorney's Office published this document,

South Carolina Representative Ryan McCabe, a current South Carolina lawmaker who serves on the judicial committee and who is also a lawyer, actually wrote a letter of support for RJ May. You know, the pedophile. In the letter, Representative McCabe says that he believes RJ's kids should have a relationship with him, quote, while they are still young. We will get to that letter in a minute. But while you are listening to these details that might be too disgusting for the devil himself, remember that a current South Carolina lawmaker is out there still supporting R.J. May.

Shouldn't that be something to expel a lawmaker over? Huh, well, back to the document. Let's have David read the first paragraph of this fiery memo in the case of R.J. May, aka Joe Biden 69, a.k.a. Eric R. R.L.ing. So y'all can get a sense of how the U.S. Attorney's Office did not come to play here. They came to nail R.J. May against a wall. Quote, send the good stuff, mom, daughter, mom's son, fucking, and bids in English, end quote. May said, requesting another kick user send him videos of children being sexually abused by their parents.

PSR paragraph 25, quote, okay, end quote, responded the other user who then asked May his preference. Quote, father, daughter, end quote, may said. quote, do you have any age six through 12 question mark? The other asked, quote, yeah, isn't that what I sent? May responded, referencing videos of children between kindergarten and sixth grade. From his home and cell phone, May freely talked about the type of child abuse videos he preferred as he sent 220 unique videos to child pornographers in 18, states and six countries over a five-day period. May was a hub of child pornography distribution.

At the same time, he was voting to criminalize and impose severe penalties for child pornography distribution." End quote. Zero punches were polled by the feds in the making of this document. The U.S. Attorney's Office reminded the court in clear, horrific language of the the disgusting and morally depraved crimes that RJ May pleaded guilty to. Meaning, the government described in detail the videos that RJ May admitted to possessing and distributing. Count one was a video of a man in the backseat of a car, forcing a child to perform oral sex while a woman nursed an infant in the front seat. Count two was a video of a toddler crying while being raped. Count three was a video of a child.

of a woman abusing a child with a sex toy. And less than a minute after RJ May distributed this video, he called a political client of his. Count four was a video showing nine children being sexually abused and degrading and humiliating ways, and at the end it included the text, Greetings to All Little Cocksuckers. Count five was a video showing two men raping a toddler.

Sorry, guys. Again, this is so disgusting. The U.S. Attorney's Office then said for the record, quote, the five videos described above represent 2% of the 220 files that may distributed in a five-day period. Those are merely the files that he pleaded guilty to. The 215 files left undescribed are equally as dark. The content supports a guideline of the 240, 40-month sentence. Now, the most heartbreaking and breathtaking part of the document is the victim impact statements. It appears that nine of the children who were abused in these videos

are older now and spoke with the U.S. Attorney's Office. Since we are a victim-focused true-crime podcast, it is important that we amplify these victims' voices in this. We will each read a few excerpts from these statements where the victims were given fake names. From a victim called Andy. Quote, there is not one day that goes by that I don't think with hatred about the sick and disgusting people who view, trade, save, and get off on my abuse when I was just a little kid and couldn't defend myself. It is sickening. End quote. The pain got worse, not better as time went on. Quote,

now that I am over the age of 18, I am in more fear. I worry about these perpetrators coming after me and harming the children in my life. I think about this every day. End quote. From Dalmatian,

quote, it leaves a knot in your stomach and a hole in your heart that can never be fixed. Anyone who says they understand how you feel and has never had a child close to them sexually assaulted can't even imagine. imagine until it happens to you. You have no idea. I don't know if a thousand years would make me feel like justice had been served. From Taylor, the abuse stops, but the feeling of hurt and confusion never does. Over a decade later, I still feel every bit of anger, confusion,

emptiness and sadness, and still have the fear of real intimacy. It's almost like I'm ashamed of myself because of what happened. Like I'm damaged. goods. Over a decade later, and ongoing till the end of time, my story will be out there, and nothing makes a person feel so helpless than to know there is nothing you can ever do about it. Every one of those pictures and videos has my story in them and have the reason why I can't live a normal life ever again in them. Who does that to a three-year-old? from a child victim called Pia. Child predators have saved and shared images and videos of my tiny body lying naked and contorted in provocative ways.

My privates are no longer private. My smile, my laughter and my innocence have all been taken from me. How I am portrayed in those pictures and videos is not how I want to be perceived. That little girl is dead. End quote. From Lily, quote, knowing that images and videos of my sexual abuse as a child continue to be distributed on the internet, causes me unending grief. My kids are around the ages that I was when sexually abusive things happened to me, including the creation of CSAM. Seeing how innocent my children are makes me understand more, not just how vulnerable I was,

but also even more how sickening it is that perpetrators view the images of me being sexually abused at those ages. It hits me harder emotionally. The victim's parents also submitted statements. Willie's mother said, quote, these offenders are still victimizing and torturing her. Her father said, quote, it sickens me and hurts me to the. the core, knowing that so many perverts are viewing my little daughter as she was, molested and raped time and time again. I am heartbroken knowing that I could not protect my daughter. A different mother stated that her family lives in a constant state of fear, constantly worried

when she is out in public if a pedophile will recognize her daughter. In the memo, the U.S. Attorney's Office emphasized the sick level of hypocrisy R.J. lived, as an apparent full-time pedophile and part-time legislator. Here is David reading that part of the memo. Quote, in public, he represented more than 41,000 Lexington County residents in the legislature. In private, he abused infants, toddlers, and prepubescent minors in child pornography. Through the office he held, the public relied on May to shape law and policy related to child protection. In public, he proudly embraced that role, quote, we as legislators have an obligation

to ensure that our children have no harm done to them, end quote, May said in January 2024, there is a particular hypocrisy in May's breach given the public positions he took on child protection issues, including by supporting enhanced criminal penalties for child pornography distribution, end quote. The government pointed out that during the times that overlapped with his child exploitation scheme, RJ used his public office to vote on laws such as the Child Online Safety Act, which imposed financial penalties for petos distributing child pornography, and the child trafficking and luring a child bill to criminalize the luring of a child.

And in case you aren't disturbed enough right now, apparently RJ May's sexually abusive behavior wasn't just online. The new document includes details from disturbing evidence that they found in May's truck. Remember RJ May allegedly took three or four trips to the South American country of Columbia in 2023 and 2024 to allegedly pay girls for sex that were videotaped? The government contends that RJ used the alias Eric Rentling to arrange these transactions. In this memorandum, the government revealed shocking evidence that they uncovered related to this trip. David?

Videos that May took and kept in his truck show how he harmed women in the commercial sex trade in Colombia. He traveled to Bogota and Medellin at least three times in 2023 and 2024 under the false name Eric Rentling. When agents searched May's truck, they found a ghost. pro camera and a memory card in his truck. And saved on that memory card were videos of May having sex with at least three young Hispanic females. In one video, May forced a female's head onto his penis as she resisted and tried to pull away. When she did, May slapped her in the face. He directed the woman to lie on the bed. He recorded her crying, and wiping tears from her eyes.

He then got on top of her and engaged in intercourse. In another, a female was seen rubbing her eyes from crying and grimacing in pain. The agent who reviewed the videos noted that the three female's body structures were more petite than that of adult women and their breasts were underdeveloped. Despite a month-long effort, including with agents on the ground in Colombia, HSI was unable to locate the women. These stories are part of May's history and characteristics, end quote. I would say so.

In addition to making their point that RJ sucks and should be in prison for a long time, the U.S. Attorney's Office mentioned RJ's sketchy business, Ivory Tusk Consulting, as an example of RJ's clear disregard for the law. As we reported last summer, RJ May's political consulting business was full of red flags, starting with the fact that he never had a business license in the state of South Carolina or even his home state of Virginia. It appears that RJ did a lot more, quote, behind the scenes consulting work until around 2020 when he and his company exponentially grew their footprint in the South Carolina political world. Not only did RJ May successfully run

his first campaign for the district 88 seat representing a part of Lexington County, his Consulting firm boasted about winning several other legislative seats, including Republican lawmakers like Vic D. Dabney, Jordan Pace, and J.D. Chaplin. Well, surprise, surprise. Remember when Mark Moore, the sketchy lawyer working on behalf of Greg Parker to harass Mandy and me and intimidate us into silence? Remember when he was hired by the South Carolina Statehouse to investigate whether RJ May was worthy of getting expelled from the statehouse, even though he ended up resigning anyway? Remember how South Carolina tax payers were billed more than $100,000 for Mark Moore's big, bad investigation. And remember when the results of this investigation were basically everything we had already

reported, plus the fact that Ivory Tusk was never registered with the Department of Revenue and never paid taxes? Well, that is mentioned in this RGA should go straight to jail memo. David? The investigation found that the South Carolina Department of Revenue, DOR, has no record of May filing income tax returns in 2022, 2023, or 2024. DoR also has no record of ivory tusk consulting. The business May owned and operated paying taxes in any year, despite bringing in more than $600,000 over a several year period. May's history shows a persistent disregard for the law, and a guideline sentence is warranted.

Can I pause for a second and tell you that even though this dumb investigation by J. Edgar Picklejuice, aka Mark Moore, was both unnecessary and extremely overpriced, I have to add a moment of outrage at this fact that he found. This pettow, whose company has made millions of dollars essentially manipulating voters to elect, in my opinion, some of the most deranged, immoral, and destructive politicians to our legislature could not even bother to do the bare minimum for his fellow citizens as a business owner by just paying his dang taxes? The South Carolina legislator is one of the least productive and most embarrassing state houses in the country. We consistently rank at the bottom for things

like crime and education and all of the things that our lawmakers should focus the majority of their time on fixing. But because of men like RJ May who have dedicated their lives to getting other like-minded ultra right-wing loonies elected to the statehouse, they tend to spend a vast majority of their time arguing about problems that do not exist and dedicating endless hours to specifically limit women's rights in our state. For example, we're On a simple, on Wednesday this week, these bozos held a hearing to discuss House Bill 3537, the South Carolina prenatal Equal Protection Act, which essentially would redefine a fertilized egg at any stage of development as a person, and could allow for any woman who contributed

to the quote-unquote death of that fertilized egg to be charged with homicide. Now, anyone with a few brain cells understands how this law could allow for women who have miscarriages to be charged with homicide and even sentenced to death. Most of us also understand that this would end all access to IVF clinics in South Carolina because who would want to risk a job working with fertilized eggs if the punishment for losing one of them could be deaf. But that's the point. legislature is now full of people who actually advocate for laws this insane.

And while I know it has been bad for a really long time, many argue that R.J. May's creation of the Freedom Caucus exponentially made the state house more stupid and less productive. RJ May made millions of dollars making South Carolina worse than it already was, and he didn't even pay taxes on those millions. And where are his state charges for tax evasion, South Carolina? Okay, end rant on that. In the conclusion of this memo, the government wrote the following plea. May operated an abusive and degrading child pornography distribution scheme that harmed and continues to harm hundreds of children. He sought out minors being sexually abused by their parents, and when he found those files, he sent them to others. He chose to amplify and compound their

abuse, and victims have told the court that the harm is lasting. May did all this while voting to criminalize and severely punish child pornography distribution as a sitting member of the South Carolina House of Representatives. Guidelines are substantial for good reason. The government respectfully requests a 240-month sentence, lifetime supervision to follow, and $73,000 in restitution. It is not clear to what extent RJ May's efforts to lessen his sentence from 20 years had any influence on Judge Cameron Curry's ultimate decision to give him 17 and a half, but Boy, he tried. In the U.S. Attorney's Office said,

Not today, Petto. For which we are all relieved. Now, we are not done talking about R.J. May in his disgusting supporters. Yes, he still has supporters. More on that after a quick break. RJ's attorneys, public defenders, despite the House Ethics Committee investigation,

showing that he didn't seem to qualify as broke enough to have public defenders. didn't specify a number of months they were hoping RJ would be sentenced to, but they did argue for the court to allow him to serve his time under house arrest at his family's farm in Virginia, which explains why one exhibit that RJ included with his memo was a handwritten list of books he's read and online courses he's taken since his arrest in June. Here's David with what was on that book list.

The Call of the Wild, White Fang. The First Battle of Bull Run. The Red Badge of Courage. On Liberty. Second Treatise of Government. Implement sheds on the farm. Simple repairs for the home and farm. Concrete construction for the home and farm.

Pork slaughtering on the farm. Beef slaughtering on the farm. Lamb slaughtering on the farm. Excuse me, but has RJ been in jail or is he had a homesteading invention. Doesn't matter. He has no home to stead, at least not for the next 17 and a half years. Also included with RJ's memo to the court, by the way, were letters of support, all but one from family members. Here's David with the non-family member letter from Representative Ryan McCabe, who along with RJ was a part of the House Freedom Dorcas, the ultra-right-wing caucus of

conservatives who can't seem to stop obsessing over ways they can control women's bodies, and make life intolerable for anyone not like them. Ryan McCabe is also a lawyer. Remember his jail calls with RJ from episode 115 of True Sunlight and his texts with RJ? He is such a loyal friend to RJ, kind of. January 12, 26, regarding RJ May.

Dear Judge Curry, I am unable to attend the hearing as I will be in late. legislative session, and I have a flight out of state that day. But I write to share my personal observations of Mr. May's character and the painful impact this matter has had on his family. I understand the seriousness of the charges, and do not attempt to undermine the seriousness in any way. Except he does undermine the seriousness of the charges in several ways. Go ahead, David. Also, we had Beth check on this, and Ryan did have a scheduled meeting in the legislator, and he did actually attend it.

Stick a pen in that. I have known Mr. May for more than five years. Ooh, what a strong position for insight on a secret pedophile. Sorry, keep reading, David. In all of my dealings with Mr. May, he was honorable, even though he was a, quote, bare-knuckle-brawling politician in the way he. approached his work. He always kept his commitments and followed through on what he said he would do. I have also observed Mr. May on many occasions with his two young children. I continue to see them. They witnessed his arrest and they have been devastated by seeing it. In the time I have known him,

I always observed Mr. May to be a good father to his children, kind, patient, and attentive. His son in particular, has had a difficult time adjusting and still asks when he will see his father again. All of this has been tremendously painful for his children. And whose fault is that, Ryan McCabe? Is it the justice system's fault or RJ May's fault? Come on now. When Mr. May was accused. It was unfathomable to me based on what I have personally seen and heard over the more than five years that I have known him. I have never heard him say anything sexually inappropriate or make crude jokes. I also witnessed him being devoted to his wife and children. Throughout the time that I have known him, even today, it is difficult to believe. This is the part that really gets

me, typical good old boy lawmaker basing his opinion solely on his own self-limited world views. He never heard any sexual comments or jokes from RJ May, and... Is that a sign of a non-pedophile, Ryan McCabe? A guy who doesn't outwardly come off as a sicko to a man he has known for five years? Here is a comment and a joke for you, Ryan. Knock knock, who's there? A sitting legislator advocating for the court to go easier on a pedophile. Oh, huh. A sitting legislator advocating for the court to go easier on a pedophile who?

You, dummy, you. Oh, and you saw him being devoted to his wife and children? What does devoted mean to you? Ryan McCabe of the House Freedom Dorkas? And does it not offend you that he was clearly performing? for you. He was putting on a show because in reality, this devoted family man was traveling abroad to record himself having sex with what appears to be underage girls who were in tears, who recorded himself slapping one of them for crying. How can you even say? He seemed cool to me,

Judge, and still show your face anywhere. How? You can continue, David. I respectfully ask the court to consider a sentence that, consistent with the court's judgment and the purposes of sentencing, allows his children, the opportunity to have some relationship with their father while they are still young. I love and worry about these two wonderful kids that need to know their father, even if he is flawed. flawed, as if R.J. May is being accused of not being a good listener or not helping around the house. But more importantly, Representative Ryan McCabe is advocating for R.J. May, who, again, recorded himself slapping a girl who was crying because of the pain he was causing to her, and who, again, distributed hundreds of images showing multiple children being abused in unthinkable ways to have a relationship with his kids while they are young, aka R.J. May's seemingly

preferred age range for kids getting sexually abused by their parents, according to what the government says about his search history. And let's not forget that R.J. May had naked photos of his older child on his phone and that the child told investigators they're not supposed to talk about while the child hit themselves in the head. You have to be profoundly sick to advocate for a pedophile to be around children. And I'm sorry, but I'm dwelling. Flawed? Imagine telling your family that the man you're friends with

is great with children, despite his flaw of finding them sexually attractive. Literally, take a seat, Ryan McCabe. Actually, literally don't take a seat. You should resign. Now, when we said Ryan McCabe was the only non-family member who wrote a letter of support on RJ's behalf,

that wasn't exactly accurate, because there are two more letters of support, but they're contained in a separate exhibit. Two letters from fellow inmates at Edgefield County Jal, where RJ has been awaiting sentencing. I'll have David read one of those letters. Dear, your armor, I feel like Robert May is a very good person. The reason I say this is because I'm only 17. Oh, no. R.J. May submitted a letter from a kid who thought your honor was your armor, spelled like the metal outfits that the knights used to wear in my husband owns.

Anyways, keep going, David. I've been going through a lot of ups and downs since I've been here, and Robert been a big help since I moved back here. I'm not allowed to talk to my family in here. He keeps me positive. and helps me control my overthinking every night. He reads a Bible verse before we go to sleep to keep us positive. Oh boy. I don't think I would have lasted in here. He talks about his kids a lot.

He really misses them. It makes him sad not being able to be there for his kids. I can tell he's a good father, not just me. everyone in here sees that he is. We all feel like he deserve a second to be with his kids. Honestly, it sounds like RJ is a better version of himself when he's behind bars. So, though I enjoy the thought of a 17-5-year prison sentence for him, I do have to question why he didn't get that full 20.

Maybe this bare-knuckle brawler of a politician can work on prison reform legislation from prison. Now let's talk about what RJ's family had to say to the court, starting with his aunt Debbie. Debbie says that RJ is compassionate and selfless and once noticed how distraught she was at a gathering to pay last respects to her father. She said RJ knelt beside her and quote, pressed her father's watch into her hand. It was a watch that he had worn every day for years, she said. And, well, that was basically it. It was a short letter. And dear God, I hope he didn't take that watch off the body at the gathering. Another one of RJ's aunts, Lori, who signed her letter with a parenthetical noting she's a retired librarian, asked the court for leniency. She said that

when her father died in 2016, R.J. took good care of him in his final days, bathing and shaving him. She said he took the lead in writing the obituary. She wrote, I still don't understand why R.J. would seek child pornography. I think R.J. must have been in a dark place and time to do this. I believe RJ fully regrets his actions. I think he will never seek out pornography again, adult or child. I think he is no danger to society. Well, as I learned, they say in the South, bless Lori's heart. A third aunt, Aunt Lisa, told the judge that RJ organized family events like holiday events, trips, gatherings, home improvement projects, and funerals. I'm sensing a trend. She asked the court for leniency and advocated for appropriate professional counseling for RJ.

Another letter was from his great aunt Marianne, who is a former licensed therapist. She said RJ was a fun-loving kid and a good young gentleman. But that's as far as she went. She told the court that she hoped and prayed that one day R.J. can attempt to redeem himself. RJ's stepmother and his father each wrote letters, which delved into the difficulties of his childhood. And that included a prolonged custody battle between them and Arjay. RJ's mother. RJ's stepmother told the court that RJ's actions are the complete opposite of who they know him to be and that she suspects his demons came from his abusive relationship with his mother

at a young age. His stepmother advocated that he be sent to a facility in Virginia where he can receive counseling and she and his father can help him become a new man. RJ's father assured the court that RJ had a strong family support system and told the court that RJ's childhood was overshadowed by a mother who tried to destroy him. Here's David with an excerpt from his letter. This is where I will never understand an addiction so strong as to throw away, first and foremost, his wife and his beautiful children, along with his career. The fact that he will never be allowed to vote may not seem a lot for an average person, but it was his whole life. Again, I ask my What demons possessed him to so callously throw it all away, especially for such a

repulsive crime and total disregard for the children, forced into an unspeakable horror? This will weigh heavily on your mind and it does mine. Your Honor, I was in your courtroom when you spoke with him on several occasions. He is not a monster. He did monstrous things. The Bible tells us sexual immorality is a sin against ourselves. I believe this to be true. Please give him a minimum sentence so he can make good as a son, brother, and yes, possibly as a father one day.

We can't change this sick world we find ourselves in. We can never forget the true victims of unimaginable horrors these children. have gone through. Now, we were really happy to see that RJ's family repeatedly acknowledged the damage he had done to the victims in these videos and images. The saddest letter, though, came from RJ's sister, who said that she has helped counsel people who were sexually abused as children. She told the court that RJ and her mother was an addict and died from cirrhosis of the liver.

Quote, as any addict home, there was serious neglect. and abuse. She said RJ was her protector. She said he fended off boys and men from her and made sure that she was safe, even protecting her from seeing the aftermath of a murder he had witnessed outside their home. Their neighbor had been stabbed to death. She wrote, I never felt unsafe with RJ, especially in a sexual manner. What a horrible thing for a sister to have to write about her brother, that she never felt like he was going to sexually abuse her. RJ also wrote in a letter, in support of himself, noting that he has nothing, that his wife had left him, and that he is quote, now forced to face the hardships of life alone without the one I love.

Forced is an interesting word and not one that I would use to describe his situation. Result is the word that he was looking for there as a result of my choices, right? As a result of me behaving like I was above the law. As a result of me doing things that I knew were morally wrong and harmful. How about that? RJ's attorneys told the court that RJ's early childhood is a, quote, black hole, and that he has few memories before the age of 11 and before the age of 13 when he witnessed two murders. The one of his neighbor getting stabbed, they said RJ held towels to the man's dying wounds,

and that he had to testify at trial. A year earlier, they said RJ was riding his bike and witnessed a husband and wife getting shot to death. He claims that he grew up in poverty with a physically abusive mother. As far as crimes, they attribute them to a porn addiction and they quote from RJ's letter to the court. If I am honest with myself in the court, I had an addiction to screens and pornography. Not a screen addiction from an elder millennial. I'm wondering if he had to hand his wife. his phone while they were at restaurants, you know, like they do with kids.

The wildest part of RJ's memo to the court is that, despite apologizing for his acts and acknowledging his guilt, RJ thinks he is still less bad than someone who created the CSAM, or someone who shows CSAM to children, or someone who tries to get sexual images from minors. We've talked about this before, but we don't see a damn difference. The result again, There's a word for it, is the same. A child was abused for your sexual gratification, and your participation in the trading of CSAM is what helps create a market for it. Here is David with a line from RJ's memo that will make you want to scream.

R.J. is not the typical child sexual abuser, producer, or predator whom Congress and the Sentencing Commission had in mind, when crafting the highest guideline ranges. The guidelines here function less as a measure of just punishment and more as a mechanical escalation driven by outdated and harsh enhancements. For these reasons, the court should limit reliance on the advisory range. Numerous courts, scholars, and even the sentencing commission have recognized the absurdity of child pornography guidelines.

Due to the increased amount of testosterone, RJ experienced an increased sex drive and began to watch more pornography even more than before. This pornography addiction eventually led to a dark place he did not foresee it going. To prove this, they included RJ's medical records in the exhibits, and it wasn't R.G.' testosterone issue that interested us, but also RJ May had high testosterone?

Maybe all the dorcas members should get tested. Maybe that's their problem. Anyway, the medical records encoded a report from RJ's visit to the doctors on August 8th, 2024, just three days after his house was raided by Homeland Security Investigations agents. The record states that RJ, whose chief complaints were anxiety and depression, reported that he was, quote, just in a bad place, that he couldn't keep his eyes open and hadn't eaten or had anything to drink in four days, which, if true, would put the onset of his anxiety on

August 4th, the day before the warrant to search his house was executed. So did he know what was coming? R.J.'s doctor wrote that R.J. described, quote, a marked increase in life stresses due to marital strain. So he blamed his wife, and not the fact that his house had been searched by federal agents in connection to an investigation into whether he had distributed hundreds of child sexual abuse images. He blamed his wife. Ryan McCabe, is that what you call devotion? According to the report, RJ described, quote, increased depressive symptoms over the past week with a subjective inability to get out of bed. He denies any suicidal ideation or attempts at self-harm. He would like to see counseling. Seems like R.J. May is about to get

at his wish, because soon he'll be getting evaluated by the psychologists and psychiatrists on staff with the Bureau of Prisons, and maybe he can even return to growing that reading list and helping put teenage inmates to bed each night. Ugh, unbelievable. Now, while R.J. May will hopefully be in prison for the majority of the next two decades, unless, you know, he pulls a Corey Fleming and suddenly gets a drug problem to reduce his sentence. Or it's possible he could get pardon. So many questions still remain in the case of RJ May. In episode 115 of True Sunlight podcast, we took a deep dive into the questionable timeline from May 24 when RJ's kick account activities were reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, to the point where

he was finally indicted in June of 2025. It's worth going back and listening to that episode because we asked a lot of questions that unfortunately the feds never answered. Like when exactly was Alan Wilson's office aware that that tip involved RJ May? You know, a fellow South Carolina Republican who started his career working for Alan Wilson and for Alan Wilson's father's campaigns. Why exactly did it take so long? from the point when South Carolina officials were made aware of the CSAM materials in May, up until August, why did it take so long for the feds to raid RJ May's home? And why did Lexington County Sheriff Jay Coom, a former client of RJ May's, may I add?

Why did he ever have the case at all? And why did it take them so long to hand it off? Did anyone tip RJ May off in the summer of 2024 and encourage RJ to delete evidence? And how come so many South Carolina public officials seem to be completely aware of the horrific allegations and investigation into RJ May's criminal activities in the summer of 2024, and yet he was still allowed to run for re-election and allowed to keep his position for over a year? And perhaps the biggest question of all is why does RJ May still have supporters? Specifically, why would Representative Ryan McCabe, whose power rests in his ability to get elected by the general public? Why would he support an actual pedophile in such a blatant and offensive way? Why would he take that risk and specifically advocate for RJ to, quote,

have a relationship with his children while they are still young. Our politics, truly this bleak in South Carolina, where elected officials feel like they can publicly support pedophiles and just keep their jobs in office? And I have to ask this, what could R.J. May possibly have on Ryan McCabe for him to take such a political risk? And again, why hasn't the state of South Carolina

press state charges against RJ May for say tax evasion. Is someone protecting him on that front? We are not done investigating crimes related to RJ May, his buddies, or those that have claimed to investigate him. If you have tips, send them to info at lunasharkmedia.com. As always, stay tuned, stay pesky, and stay in the sunlight. True Sunlight is a Luna Shark production created by me, Mandy Matney, co-hosted and reported by journalist Liz Farrell. Research support provided by Beth Braden.

Audio production support provided by Jamie Hoffman and Grace Hills. Case file management provided by Kate Thomas. Learn more about our mission and membership at LunaSharkMedia.com. Interruptions provided by Luna and Joe Pesky.