SERIALously - 151: Mica Miller: What REALLY Happened?

Episode Date: May 7, 2024

On April 27th, police were called to Lumber River State Park in North Carolina, where they found Mica Miller’s body. Mica was only 30 at the time of her death. Mica was married to Pastor John-Paul Miller with the Solid Rock Church in Market Common Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. As police quietly began an investigation into Mica’s death, the news of her death initially shocked everyone, but not in the way you might be thinking.  If you or someone you know needs help, resources or someone to talk to, you can find it at the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline website or by calling 1-800-273-8255. People are available to talk to 24/7. Follow the podcast on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@serialouslypodcast        Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/annieelise  All Social Media Links: https://www.flowcode.com/page/annieelise_       SERIALously FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/SERIALouslyAnnieElise/    Shop the Merch: https://annieelise.com/   About Me: https://annieelise.com/      For Business Inquiries: [e-mail] Sources: Robeson County Sheriff's Office Myrtle Beach Online Wide Open County WBTW News 13 ABC15 WRAL FOX NewsNation Robby Harvey- FB Audio Credits: NewsNation Robeson County Sheriff's Office

Hey, true crime besties. Welcome back to an all new episode of serial asleep. Hey everybody, welcome back to an all new episode of Serialistly with me, Annie Elise. Today's episode is, I guess you'd call it a bonus episode, but it is going to take the place of our normal Thursday headline highlight episode. And the reason why is because I have been receiving so so many requests from you guys to talk about this case and I wasn't going to talk about it at first because there have been no charges It has been ruled self-inflicted, but the more that we were researching it and looked into it I feel as though it is worth discussing not to lay any more You know not to fuel the conspiracy narratives that are out there

But because there are certain elements of it that do illustrate to me red flags of domestic disputes of mental control emotional control emotional abuse and so if anything I just wanted to come on here and talk about it almost to use this as like a case example of what to look for if you're in an unhealthy relationship and unfortunately what to look for if like friends or family are in an Unhealthy relationship and don't get me wrong there still are so many people out there that believe that there is more to this story and Then what the police is sharing even though there has been a 9- been a 911 call released now and a full timeline of events.

But I'm gonna lay it all out for you. It's the case of Micah Miller. And she is the woman that was found dead over the weekend on April 27th. Her husband is a pastor. He made some very unsettling sermons right after her death and in the months leading up to her death. So what I'm gonna do is I'm going to lay everything out for you as far as why people think there are a lot of red flags,

why people think there's shady backstory, why they think there's more to this, but also what the facts are and what we know. That way you have just kind of a full comprehensive view. And again, that's not to fuel any of these conspiracy narratives, but I want you to hear what Micah had been going through because there could be more to this story not saying that he's a murderer, but as to what her mental health struggles were and what the rooted cause of those mental health struggles was from, but I think it's important to shed light on this case for a multitude of reasons as I explained. So as I mentioned, her death has been ruled self-inflicted.

A 911 call was also released on the afternoon of May 7th, and I will play that for you. And it just further illustrates that this was not murder as many are suggesting. Could she have been driven to it for one reason or another? Sure, and we will talk about more of that that and then you can draw your own conclusions. But let's kind of jump right in and again, I'm going to lay out what is raising red flag for people and why and what really happened and just everything. So everything in today's episode is sourced from official news sources, court documents, family statements, and also police reports.

Anything else that we talk about is alleged. It's my opinion only. As a reminder, just always do your own research. So with that, let's just get right into this case. So on April 27th, 2024, police were called to Lumber River State Park in North Carolina. There they found Micah Miller's body. Now Micah was only 30 years old at the time of her death, and Micah was married to Pastor John Paul Miller. He was a pastor with the Solid Rock Church in Market Common Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. So following her death, multiple memorial services were held in Myrtle Beach to honor Micah, who friends and family say was just an extremely involved member at Solid Rock Church, where she sang and where her husband was the pastor.

One man said, quote, she was just the nicest person you ever talked to. She was very uplifting, very supportive, always helping. She was just so nice. Also, a woman said that Micah baptized her daughter and also played an active role in the church's youth program. So as police quietly began an investigation into Micah's death, the news of her death initially shocked everyone, but not in the way that you might be thinking. See, nobody knew that she had died until her husband, Pastor John Paul Miller, gave a very bizarre sermon to his congregation.

We're not gonna 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 at 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 little bit. I'm taking a little bit of a break and I don't want 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, it was it was self induced. And it was up in North Carolina. And we're gonna have a funeral for her next Sunday here at three p.m. And so it's all I can be. 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 y'all knew that she wasn't well mentally and then she needed her medicine. That was hard to get to her.

Now this clip was posted across social media platforms and instantly went viral guys because not only is the statement shocking in general, yes, but it was also kind of said in such a crass manner from her husband who is a pastor of all people and on top of all of that,

the fact that he literally started out by saying that everybody needed from her husband who is a pastor of all people. And on top of all of that, the fact that he literally started out by saying that everybody needed to leave quietly after he was finished with his statement. I mean, the whole thing was just strange at best and in my opinion, almost pathological at worst. And it kind of just left everybody, left everybody just feeling like

something wasn't quite right here. So John Paul later told ABC 15, quote, she had struggled with suicide before. Each time we would help her through it and take her to the doctor and we got through it and everything was fine. She even gave a few testimonies here at church, which we have on video.

She battled suicide, but God took care of her and got her through it. But then as quickly as John Paul's announcement of Micah's death went viral, all sorts of different information began coming out, which made this entire situation just all the more puzzling. Many people felt like there was definitely way more to the story than John Paul was letting on, and Micah's family echoed these same sentiments. So, let's talk through all of that. First, Micah filed for separation from John Paul

just 12 days before her death. And according to her obituary, they got married back in 2017 after first meeting back in 2009. It's also been alleged that she was 15 years old when they first met, but just to give you a little bit more context behind the timeline of how long they had known each other.

So the second thing that people thought that was odd aside from her filing for separation just 12 days before her death is that she had filed three different quote separate support and maintenance requests. This is since last year and the very last one was filed in mid-April of 2024. So the second thing that people thought that was odd aside from her filing for separation just 12 days before her death is that she had filed three different quote separate support and maintenance requests. This is since last year and the very last one was filed in mid April of 2024 again and

she was just found dead on the 27th. Now separate support and maintenance allows for one spouse to receive court-ordered support from another spouse without officially divorcing. The third issue that people were taking with all of this and deeming as a red flag or somewhat suspicious is that back on March 11th, 2024, so a little over a month before she died, Micah's tires were completely slashed around 1 30 a.m. at Spring Maid Pier. She claimed that this was also the second time that a razor had deflated her tire within that week. When she took her car in to get her tires fixed at the

dealership, a mechanic actually ended up letting her know that not only were her tires slashed, but there was also a tracking device on her car. So Micah reported this tire slashing to the police. Then, later on, at around 1130 a.m., she called the police again. According to the police report, Micah reported, quote, a man who she has been avoiding came up to her at a gas station. The suspect pulled up beside her and tried to speak with her. She told him to go away, and he sped off before she could record this encounter. He also has been calling and texting her from a private number despite the fact that she has blocked his number. The report also stated that Micah noticed quote strange activity and believed that people were following or watching her.

She then told police that she feared for her life and that she tried to get a restraining order against this suspect who was not named in the police reports because no charges ever came from this complaint. So you can be the judge of who the suspect is in the police reports because no charges ever came from this complaint. So you can be the judge of who the suspect is in this report. Many people of course believe that it was her husband, that she had been trying to get away from him, that maybe he was following her, he put this tracking device on her, then she finally files for divorce, all of these things, right? However, a lot of other people are saying that, no, this is actually a component of mental health struggles.

She was hyper paranoid. She thought somebody was following her. Yes, there was a tracking device, but could that have been self-placed? I mean, when I tell you guys that theories are going wild, they are going wild. But I just want to talk through all of them with you so that you can get this full overview of what's going on in this case, so then can of course come to your own conclusions. So in another red flag, the fourth or I should say in an alleged red flag, what people are deeming as a red flag is in an affidavit her sister Sierra Francis asked the court to

be the special administrator of Micah's estate and in this affidavit she says quote I was aware of Micah's family dynamics and relationship with her husband, John Paul Miller, also with her stepchildren, Solea, Asher, Logan, Eli, and Zach. Micah and I spoke every few days, texting daily, so much so as to even create playlists together. Micah would drive to visit me and my family in Gaffney, South Carolina, at least once a month. I know my sister has 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 which I watched. Micah confided in me that Mr. Miller was moving assets that were in his name, such as his vehicle, also changing the deed to their house, to their church, transferring interest in crocodile rocks to one of his sons. And in February 2024, Mr. Miller removed my sister's personal items from their home that they shared while she was admitted to a mental health facility,

and then he left them at an 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, so that it would support her claims against Mr. Miller as to his abuse, his character, his paramours, and associates that he quote paid off or blackmailed. While at the facility those documents, emails, files, etc. were all removed from her phone, personal laptop, vehicle, and purse and they were never recovered. Further, Micah was unable to access her iCloud account, her email, or her Facebook profile. Mr. Miller continued using at least one of Micah's accounts, causing any recipient to believe that it was Micah's communications. Micah even 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. 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 the 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 JP. Micah forwarded a family group text message notifying us that Mr. Miller was served at the divorce papers on April 25th, 2024. Then on April 27th, 2024, my sister, Micah Miller, was found dead as a result of a gunshot wound. She was found in Lumberton, North Carolina, which as a side note, guys, is about an hour and a half drive from Myrtle Beach. So if all of that's true, that's pretty damning, right? And that's what's gotten a lot of people up in arms and totally thinking that the husband is guilty and responsible for this. And we're also going to talk more about how she died shortly, but first there's more that you need to know about John Paul. So John Paul was previously married and had five children before marrying Micah.

According to friends and family and even church congregation members, John Paul actually met Micah when she was 14 or 15 years old in that youth group, as I previously mentioned. Now it's been reported that at the time, he was actually the leader of that youth group, and that this was during his previous marriage. So some people believe that he allegedly groomed her before then marrying her later on when she was legally an adult. And to level set the age difference, John is 44 years old now and Micah is 30 years old so back then he would have been around 28 years old when she was 14 or 15 years old.

Certainly too old to be dating a 14 or 15 year old. Was there a, did he have an affair with Micah and leave his wife and children to be with her? And if that's the case, how old was she when he did that? So I remember a specific conversation that I had with him when that was brought up. And because I'd heard about that, like there were rumors, you know, going around that their relationship even started in infidelity and things like that.

And in my conversation with him, it was he did basically confirm that he did not get into her age. What he said to me point blank was that she was in my youth group. We became friends. Over time, it became kind of something more more and that was probably the gist of it As far as I can remember now, I mean it's been it's been years ago, but it was it was a little concerning And there were other Yeah

That's very concerning right? Oh very yes and there were other members of the church, though, that when I asked about it, it was just kind of, it's something that kind of just everybody knew and accepted. Now, in another unsettling piece of information, one of John Paul's exes posted on Facebook about a similar situation.

Again, this is according to a Facebook post, guys, so take it with a grain of salt, because I haven't been able to 100% verify the information. But in this post she reads, and I'm gonna read it verbatim for you because she hashtags this post with justice for Micah. She says, while posting updates, I'm 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 years old. I was a child at the time but 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, while we were together all 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 their marriage. This has been hard to watch and keep quiet about, but I feel it's time to be transparent about it. I attended and graduated from Grand

Stand Academy, later renamed Cathedral Hall Academy, the church and school his father founded and was headmaster of, which later became Solid Rock. I dated John Paul and dealt with a small amount of his abuse comparatively. JP also contacted me inappropriately after Allie finally left him due to infidelity. This was around 2016. He was not remorseful of his actions to her 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 in the church as teenagers

is the overall abuse from JP and his father to others. I also visited many state parks with JP, visiting his dad because he loved state parks to quote, reconnect with God. Myrtle Beach State Park is also where his dad was arrested for soliciting gay sex. You can look that up publicly. The fact

that Micah was found in a state park only brings me back to this family. I feel I have been a coward in not speaking out and dealing with this privately with my family, but I want to say that we believe that this was Micah's last and oh so important purpose in stopping this man from continuing to hurt 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 his dad represent is not of God. 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 that JP treated Micah. Please don't let this evil man turn you away from the church. And then it's hashtag justice for Micah. And it has over 700 likes, 182 comments, and 161 shares. Now even though Micah officially filed for divorce in April, she and John Paul have been separated for months. It's been reported that during this time John Paul has had a girlfriend. Now this alleged girlfriend's husband died three years ago from what was ruled as a drowning accident. And in a weird twist of fate or serendipitous moment, whatever you decide, that same report indicated that John Paul conducted the husband's funeral. Another thing that has people up in arms and thinking that there's a lot of red flags and

shadiness going on here is that Micah posted videos on Facebook speaking to women in general about situations of abuse. And she also shared advice to those who may be in abusive relationships. 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. 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 abuse, 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, you're a bad wife or you're a bad husband or you're not giving it your all when you know you are. 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? A friend that spoke to Micah the night before she died also posted on Facebook and said the following,

I will not sit here and pretend that I know exactly what happened on Saturday, but I know a lot. I am well aware in the past that Micah has had mental health issues and I witnessed her struggle firsthand, but I also know that in the last few months, this has never been used as a weapon to control her. The Micah I saw at the beginning of her mental health journey was not the Micah I witnessed in the last month. The Micah I was seeing was a grown woman, trying to break the chains of an abusive marriage. When I talked to Micah last,

she was making plans moving forward and trusting God. Her faith was her shield. She had reconnected with people that she had been isolated from, myself included. She was sorting out her new normal, and God was putting the right people around her. When we had our first meeting in years, we sat at lunch and talked until dinnertime for five hours.

We had been in regular communication since that day. I was part of Micah's church for years. We did life together during that season. Leaving that church was one of the hardest things Brian and I ever did. We loved the people in that church, but God had made it clear that we needed to go because it was a toxic environment. We endured relentless attacks from the pastor. It was unlike anything we had ever experienced. In ministry, God calls us where He needs us, and instead of supporting and loving us, our entire family came under attack. There were attempts to sabotage us in our new church home, calls made to employers,

dropping in at my place of business in the middle of my workday when I refused to answer calls, and the calls were more than I can count. Emails that were rants in writing, it was a nightmare for close to a month. So Micah wasn't just leaving a church, she was leaving her marriage, she was done. She hired a lawyer, she moved out, she was getting a divorce, and she was left with nothing but her faith,

her family, and a small circle of friends. Was it hard? Yes. She had her tires cut multiple times, found multiple trackers on her car, couch hopped in fear of being found, and was hospitalized by her husband when it was completely unnecessary. She confided to me that she felt like an orphan and feared that no church would want her because of him. What she didn't know is that a large portion of us who had experienced the wrath

of that existing church were waiting for her with open arms. I talked to her multiple times in her final week here on earth. She was making plans to get her hair cut, getting help with her car payment because she was a little short after paying her divorce lawyer, and planning to meet us for the second service at church on Sunday. My final text with her on Friday at 9.19pm was a woman making plans to live. What happened between Friday night and Saturday? I was so overwhelmed seeing two certain people on the news last night trying to minimize Micah by painting her mentally ill and crying like they were currently present in her life. So guys, that post was obviously loaded for a multitude of

reasons. Not only was she saying that she was texting with her up until she was then found dead and that Micah had been making all these plans to live and to live a more happy life, but she's also saying that she had witnessed abuse first hand from the church, the wrath of the church as she calls it, the wrath of JP, John Paul, the pastor. So it makes you wonder what's true and what's not regarding that because we have seen incidents where, unfortunately, victims succumb to their mental health issues and even if they are making plans,

even if they seem like they do want to live and they have the will to live, they do take their lives. So the fact that she was texting at 919, while it could be an indicator of something, not necessarily, we've seen it proven otherwise several times. But there's a couple other things that are standing out to people. So after John Paul's sermon, you know,

the one when he announced Micah's mental health issues and said that she died of a suicide, John Paul was released from his duties as a pastor. And a notice was sent out to the members of the church saying that John Paul was quote, released for a time of healing, counsel, and guidance pursuant to our governing instrument. The Solid Rock Church website has also since been suspended. Another unsettling piece of information, or perhaps just a red herring, is a video on

Vimeo which shows Micah talking about her own struggles with mental health. And in this video she describes a situation where she almost took her own life before. Now according to The Creator Plunder, this was posted anonymously just three days before Micah's death. Now many people online and in Facebook groups have put together another timeline of events relating to John Paul's statements at the church. This post comes from somebody named Robbie Harvey on Facebook, and I haven't been able to verify every single thing in this post,

so again, please take this information with a grain of salt and do your own research. But it's titled, The Micah Miller Timeline of Events. It says, on February 4th, Pastor John Paul preaches a sermon on Korah and Moses and how it's wrong to rise against religious leaders. On February 23rd, Pastor John Paul files for spousal support. February 25th, in another sermon to his congregation, Pastor John Paul says a mentally ill person

doesn't know they're sick. Quote, you have to trust people around you. The thing that's sick is your mind, and your mind is what you need to realize that you're sick." 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 saying to her, quote, "...if you ever want to talk about your husband, you can talk to me and I'll keep it confidential." Visibly upset, the pastor followed up with, quote, "...that's a demon talking, end quote. Now I just gotta say guys really quick before I continue, this does stick out to me whether it means something or not in the

greater grand scheme of thing, I don't know, but the fact that he's vocalizing publicly, that he went through two years of messages on his wife's phone, first of all, it's my belief that if you go through your partner's phone history messages that that is an indicator of some type of like control or abusive behavior emotionally, whatever it may be. I just I personally don't believe in doing that. But if you're allowing it and you're like go through my phone, let's go through each other's to each their own. I just think if you're like secretly going through a phone, that's not a good sign.

But also the fact that he then talked about his findings publicly and that he found 18 people had reached out to her saying, hey if you ever want to talk about your husband, talk to me. I'll keep it confidential. To me that kind of indicates that there were 18 people at minimum worried enough to where they expressed to her, hey if there's anything you want to confide in me, it'll be confidential. Is there anything that you want to talk about?" So either they recognize that something was wrong or maybe they recognize something in his behavior. And I think that's pretty telling,

not saying that he's a murderer, but like, I think that does shed some light on the dynamic of this marriage. But again, for him to then just say this publicly, but say, that's a demon talking, it kind of feel, it's kind of giving entitled. It's kind of giving thinking you're holier than now. So this was on March 10th.

And another piece on this timeline there, because there's a few things from March 10th. And the next thing says, March 10th, Pastor John Paul says to his congregation, quote, one thing I'm going to preach about is getting rich, strong, healthy, and finding a hot wife that loves Jesus. This was while he was wearing his wedding ring. Then on March 10th, he also tells his congregation that his wife was in the hospital and as soon as she got out,

she left him. He says, quote, She gets out and she just leaves. Just completely leaves me. Leaves everything. Drains the bank account and just goes. Guess what? While you're talking bad about me out there, I'm building a school in Africa for over a hundred kids to be able to be fed. Again, why he's airing all of this dirty laundry publicly, I don't know. I've seen it happen actually in a church local to me too and it brushed me the wrong way. But also like the fact that he's talking about how she leaves this hospital then leaves him drains the bank account yet He's bringing it back to him and how amazing he is being like so while you're doing this

I'm building a school in Africa for over a hundred of for over a hundred kids so they can be fed It's just like it's giving I don't want to say narcissist, but kinda I don't know. What do you think? So then on March 12th his request for spousal support was dismissed, but there's no explanation as to why. Then five days later on March 17th, Pastor John Paul tells a story of a pastor whose wife left him for a member of his staff. The pastor had to hire a third-party company to find her. Once he found her, divorce papers were drawn up. When the time came to sign the papers, the pastor couldn't do it though because quote, the Bible says divorce is wrong and that if she wanted out she would have to leave him.

So here and again this is just me speculating guys, the third party having to find her, is that the tracker that was on her car? Did he hire a private investigator to follow her? What's really happening here? Because remember, this whole police report when her tires were slashed and when they fixed the tires and they located the tracking device, this was on March 11th. So this was literally right before his sermon. He gave his sermon on March 17th. So was this whole third company the tracker? It's just weird, right? Like, again, not saying this guy's a murderer, but like there's definitely some sort of level of control and emotional abuse, in my opinion at least. There's something weird happening beneath the surface here.

So then that same day on March 17th in a Facebook post made by Micah's sister Sierra, March 17th in a Facebook post made by Micah's sister, Sierra, she says that she keeps an eye on her phone, quote, "...for fear of my sister's safety due to others' behaviors toward her." She goes on to mention the sermon from March 17th, and she calls out the congregation of Solid Rock Church. The very next day, then, on March 18th, Micah posted a video encouraging others. 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. But then on March 22nd, Micah posts another video. In this one, she's suggesting that she was being abused physically and

mentally. She also says, quote, God hates divorce, but how does God feel about abuse? She also suggests that her husband forced her to take illegal drugs. Now what sticks out to me with this, again, just my opinion, is this was just what? Five days after his sermon when he's saying that the Bible says divorce is wrong and that if she wanted out, she would have to leave him after he had found her and how the divorce papers were drawn up all that stuff So then for five days later for her to say yes God hates divorce, but how does he feel about abuse?

I feel it's just painting a very clear picture of what's going on in this marriage at least to me And again, I just want I know I've said it before but I'm gonna reiterate it does not mean he's a murderer But it does show that there's some sort of manipulation, some sort of level of mental control, mental abuse, at least to me. So this was on March 22nd. Fast forward about three weeks to April 16th, Mica files for spousal support. Then about a week later on April 23rd, a hearing notice was sent out for Micah's request for spousal support, and a court date was set for June 5th. But then, just five days later, Micah is found dead. So with all of that, it certainly paints a troubling picture, right?

And many people, of course, rightfully so, are wondering what really happened to Micah. Well, on May 6th, 2024, Micah's official cause of death was ruled as a self-inflicted gunshot wound. According to Robeson County Medical Examiner Dr. Richard Johnson, quote, based on the nature of the wound, it is consistent with a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and it was not in the back of the head, as it has been speculated. According to WPDE News, the medical examiner said that although he wasn't the on-call medical examiner when Micah died, he was present at the scene.

But just like so many things so far in this case, this new information came with more questions than answers. Additionally, Micah's friends and family do not believe the medical examiner's findings. So then on May 7th, 2024, the 911 call was released and this call is very heartbreaking and difficult to listen to because in it you can hear Micah ask the dispatcher if they're able to track her phone. After a couple of minutes the woman asks why and she says because I'm

about to kill myself and I want my family to know where to find me and then the line goes dead. Robinson County 911, what's the address of your emergency? Hi. Are you able to trace the location of my phone? Let me see. You don't know where you're at? At National Park. I have my location on, I think on my phone.

My phone is on. I just did my share of my location. Okay, I'm showing... I don't think you are in Robeson County. Are you at the Lumber River State Park? Yeah, that's where I am. are in robinson county at one b the lumber river state park that's right tell me what's uh... happen uh... 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 saying, okay? Let me make sure I got the exact location where you're at, okay? Just one minute. Shortly after this call was made public, the Sheriff's Office also made a post on Facebook that was public. And in it, they discussed the 911 call about how it went to the dispatcher's office and

if it could be the call could be traced all of these things and then they go through the timeline of events after they recovered her body. They said that investigators located a SIG gun case on the passenger seat of the vehicle and a box of ammunition in the center console of the vehicle. They also found a receipt for that SIG handgun from a pawn shop and a receipt from a convenience store. Those receipts were both in the vehicle and both receipts were dated from the same day of Micah's death, which was April 27th, 2024. During the search of the park for Micah when they knew that the 911 call had come in, the investigators were approached by an individual

who had found a bag near the water edge with an identification belonging to Micah. The individual stated that he had heard somebody crying and a gunshot while he was fishing. Shortly after, a body was located in the water and the victim was identified as Micah Miller. The SIG 9-millimeter handgun was also located in the water at the crime scene during that initial

search of the area. Her phone and her other personal belongings were also located and there was a search of Micah's phone which revealed that she had conducted a Google search for National Parks Near Me and then the Lumber River State Park location was provided. So the investigators conducted several interviews and they developed a timeline of events in relation to Micah's death. That morning at 11 a.m. Micah was observed on her ring camera arriving at her residence in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. About 40 minutes later at 11 38 she was observed again on her ring camera leaving her residence. At 12 12

p.m. she was observed on store surveillance walking into a Dix pawn shop which is also located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. A minute later she's observed at the register and she initiates the purchase of that gun. Then at 12 34, Micah is observed leaving the pawn shop after purchasing the gun and the ammunition. At 1 o' 6 p.m., her Honda Accord is observed traveling on Highway 501 near Four Mile Road in South Carolina. Then 20 minutes later, at 1 27, it's observed arriving at a grocery and grill located in Mullen, South Carolina. At 1 35 p.m., Micah is observed leaving the store after purchasing a drink and gas.

Then at 2.54 p.m. Micah makes that 911 call. In the post, the investigators also say unfortunately rumors and conspiracy theories were spreading quickly and assumptions were being made. However, in the end, they must make the decisions based on the fact and the evidence that has been gathered. They say, while we know it's not what many people wanted to hear, the evidence is quite clear and compelling, and we are as saddened as anyone that this occurred. There are many factors that we have reviewed that occurred over an extended period of time that are probably related to the reason for this investigation, but in the end, sadly, a tragic decision was made by Micah that ended her life. They also shared some still frames of the CCTV of her of the footage of her buying the

gun of her driving of her getting gas. And it's really, really incredibly heartbreaking guys. Many people thought that her husband, John Paul was guilty this whole time that it was some elaborate cover up or that he staged the scene scene flawlessly but that's clearly not the case but the reason I wanted to share this is because we did hear so many different accounts from friends and family and from Micah herself that there was some sort of element of mental abuse, emotional abuse, things that may have led her down this dark path of mental health. We know that her husband

is the one who allegedly committed her to the mental health facility. But my question here is, although he's in my opinion not guilty of murder of course, and it's pretty clear cut, it does make me wonder what's on the tox report. Because in that video from Micah herself, she does allude to being fed illegal drugs and we know that she had a tracking device found on her car. All of these things that are really close to a level of control and emotional and manipulation and things like that. So again, not to theorize too much, but could it be possible that if she was being fed some sort of drugs, that is what also magnified and amplified these mental health issues that she was struggling with. When did the

mental health struggles begin? Was it recent? What's the history there? Because could it be that there are other contributing factors that put her into this hyper paranoid state and this state of feeling like there was no other option, no other escape from his grasp, nothing else to do. And I'm not saying that in a way to victim shame him. He is a grieving husband, I would assume. But again, the whole point of today's episode is to just illustrate what really can go on in some of these domestic marriages where there's these issues, where there's a history of abuse abuse whether it's physical, emotional, mental, whatever it may be, what are the signs we can look for to where it doesn't end in a tragic result

like this? And what does that talks report say? Maybe it says nothing but maybe it does say something and maybe there there is a reason for I mean nobody's tires get slashed for no reason, nobody has a tracker put on their car for no reason unless she has a tracker put on their car for no reason unless she was struggling so significantly with mental health that she did that on her own and that she was, maybe there's an element of schizophrenia. I don't know, guys.

I'm just like trying to make sense of it like I know so many other people are. Is there something that contributed to putting her in this mental state? To where she felt like there was no other way out It's just so definitive that she wakes up one morning goes into this pawn shop buys the gun goes makes the call because she wants her family to find her it is Devastating and so extremely tragic of course no charges have been made at this time

And I don't believe that they will be against the husband But I do wonder what other information will surface, if any. So I probably won't cover this case again, unless there is new information, but if there is, I definitely will keep you updated. But in the meantime, let's just all keep Micah's friends and families in your thoughts and prayers,

and just hope that anybody else struggling like this gets the help that they need. I will leave some resources in the show notes below and let's just pray that Her family gets some not closure, but some peace maybe but in the meantime Let's just pray that everybody who was close to Micah gets some peace in all of this and I'll let you know if we hear more Alright guys. Thanks again for tuning into this bonus episode of serial asleep. Let me know what you guys think Do you think there's more to the story? Do you think this is pretty cut and dry?

Again, I'm not trying to go too crazy to conspiracy to you know down the rabbit hole But I think that maybe there are other factors and circumstances that contributed to her mental health But let me know what you guys think because I know that there are a lot of differing opinions out there mental health, but let me know what you guys think, because I know that there are a lot of differing opinions out there. All right, guys, thanks for tuning into this episode, and until the next one, please, please, please stay safe. Bye.