Murdaugh Murders Podcast - TSP #83 - JP Miller’s Cozy and Strange Emails to Police Part Two + Would Mica’s Law Have Actually Helped Mica Francis?

Episode Date: January 16, 2025

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell continue their deep dive into the Mica Francis case in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Today’s episode begins with a clarification concerning Mica’s divorce attorney Regina Ward and the settlement terms reached between JP Miller and Mica’s family this past summer. Also on the show, in a press conference in June 2024, Regina Ward shared a list of abuses that Mica allegedly experienced at the hands of Pastor JP Miller … alleged abuses that mirror a proposed coercive control law that failed three times to make it out of state legislative committee. In that press briefing, Regina said that had this law been enacted before Mica’s death there was a possibility it could have saved her life. Mandy and Liz take another look at the proposed law and a provision that seems like it would have protected JP more than it would have protected Mica. Plus, JP is up to his old antics and has filed 10 new civil lawsuits against an assortment of protesters and content creators. And Part Two of the very cozy and strange emails JP Miller and his righthand woman Tricia Ross sent to police regarding Mica. Also, as we continue to cover the Christa Bauer murder in Houston, Texas, please consider donating to Christa’s family’s Go Fund Me as we have. Christa’s husband awaits trial in the murder of Christa and their unborn baby and her family has had to temporarily move to Texas to take care of Christa’s two young children, Maddie and Gannon because the court thinks the children belong there as opposed to South Carolina, where the hub of their support system is. The family has not yet reached their fundraising goal. Click here for details: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-christas-family-in-their-time-of-loss Stay Tuned, Stay Pesky and Stay in the Sunlight...☀️ Episode Resources APTA’s Christa Nicole Bauer Clinical Excellence Award Sweetwater One Two Three Cafe and Palmetto Flats Restaurant & Tavern Chloe Bess Motion Dismissed - Jan 15, 2025 SC Code of Laws: Title 15, Chapter 15, Article 1: Death by Wrongful Acts Mica’s List & Mica’s Law Regina Ward Press Conference at Horry County Court House - June 5, 2024 Robbie Harvey Interview with Regina Ward on X - Jan 9, 2025 Suicides from domestic abuse are not rare… just the tip of the iceberg If you are in crisis, please call, text or chat with the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988, or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741. Premium Members also get access to ad-free listening, searchable case files, written articles with documents, case photos, episode videos and exclusive live experiences with our hosts on lunasharkmedia.com all in one place. CLICK HERE to learn more: https://bit.ly/3BdUtOE. What We're Buying... Eric Bland's New Book!!! - Mandy's Book in Paperback!! - Amanda Knox's New Book Peloton - onepeloton.com Find your push. Find your power with Peloton at onepeloton.com. Here's a link to some of our favorite things: https://amzn.to/4cJ0eVn And a special thank you to our other amazing sponsors: Microdose.com, PELOTON, and VUORI. Use promo code "MANDY" for a special offer! *** 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: bsky.app/profile/mandy-matney.com | bsky.app/profile/elizfarrell.com TrueSunlight.com facebook.com/TrueSunlightPodcast/ Instagram.com/TrueSunlightPod Twitter.com/mandymatney Twitter.com/elizfarrell youtube.com/@LunaSharkMedia tiktok.com/@lunasharkmedia Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hey there listeners, EB here and I want to tell you about a new weekly podcast that I'm hosting. I love being a lawyer, being a speaker. I absolutely am looking forward to being an author of my book, Anything But Bland, but I'm excited to tell you that I'm launching my very own podcast called Good Skill, Betting On Yourself. I delve into the idea that success isn't merely about luck, but is instead achieved through honing skills and strategic efforts and planning. Each episode of Good Skill offers listeners an insightful journey into the minds of individuals who are reshaping their respective industries and their careers.

Good Skill serves as a beacon of inspiration, with a roster of interesting guests like independent journalist, media disruptor, and couple of justice co-hosts Mandy Matney. These conversations empower listeners seeking to make their mark in the world. Visit the ericbland.com website to learn more or listen wherever you get your podcasts. I don't know if or when the FBI will finally make an arrest in their investigation surrounding Micah Francis' death. But considering the fact that JP is still the only person who can sue on Micah's behalf, we are counting on the FBI now more than ever to come through to get justice for Micah. My name is Mandy Matney. 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. Hello and do we have a show for you today. Buckle up. To start out, we are continuing to look into Krista Bauer's case in Houston, Texas, where her husband is awaiting trial for the murder of her and their unborn baby on October 7th, 2024. In the meantime, Krista's friends and co-workers are keeping her memory alive. The Academy of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Physical Therapy, a group that Krista was involved with, have created an award in her memory recognizing excellence in the clinical field and Krista is the first recipient.

They will be presenting that award on February 13th. Also, we are told that the hospital where Krista dedicated so much of herself will be dedicating the new gym in their rehab facility in Krista's honor in February as well. And one more thing about Krista, I cannot think about how much suffering victims of families go through in the aftermath of a death like this. Not only did Krista's family have Krista taken from them forever,

not only do they have to grapple with a lifetime of grieving ahead of them, there is an actual price tag to what Lee Gilley allegedly did. It's the ultimate insult to injury. Christus' parents, who are small business owners, have had to hire attorneys in their fight to be guardians to Christus' two small children, Maddie and Gannon. And they've taken up residency in Texas while they await the outcome of Lee's fate, which

could take years. The court has determined that the next big thing for Maddie and Gannon is to remain in Texas despite the fact that both Lee and Christa's families live in South Carolina. And despite the fact that the Bowers have a large and loving family who could offer them the support that they need right now. This past weekend, friends and family of Christa's held a golf tournament at Somerville Country Club called Bower Power.

They are still accepting donations. Check the link in the description and we will share more on social media for anyone who can pitch in to help. There's also a GoFundMe page that we included in the episode description. Another way to support the family would be to go get a meal at one of their restaurants in Somerville. Either the Sweetwater Cafe and Grill on West Richardson Avenue or Palmetto

Flats on Bacon Bridge Road also in Somerville. Lee Gillie will be arraigned in Houston, Texas at the end of January. Stay tuned for more coverage on Christa's case in the next few weeks. On Wednesday, because of course, breaking news always seems to happen to us when we're on deadline, the South Carolina Appellate Court published its decision on the appeal that one of Bowen Turner's victims,

Chloe Bess, had filed last April. Chloe was sexually one of Bowen Turner's victims, Chloe Bess, had filed last April. Chloe was sexually assaulted by Bowen Turner when he was not just out on bond for the rape of Dallas Stoller, but was out on bond without a GPS ankle monitor because two months earlier, his attorneys had successfully argued to have it removed. When Bowen was arrested for assaulting Chloe,

he was sent to the Department of Juvenile Justice but again was soon after released on bond after his attorney, state senator Brad Huddo, argued that Bowen was not getting the educational enrichment he needed behind bars, which is code for Bowen is too white for prison. We've talked many times on the show about what went down during Bowen's plea deal in April 2022, the one that happened behind closed doors and that pretty much kept the victims in the dark. They thought they were having a hearing about the dozens and dozens of times Bowen had violated his bond order by traveling outside the boundaries of his house arrest.

But instead, it turned into a slap on the wrist sweetheart deal for Bowen, where Dallas' assault charge was dismissed altogether and Chloe's was reduced to assault and battery. Bowen was sentenced to five years probation under the Youthful Offender Act and only had to register as a sex offender if he violated the terms of his probation, which he did almost immediately and more than once.

You might remember that Bowen's appeal, the one where he said the court erred in making him register as a sex offender when he was arrested for disorderly conduct after acting like a perverted fool at a local bar and walking home intoxicated. The court denied that appeal, thankfully. But honestly, the gall of this guy. Anyway, Chloe and her attorney, Sarah Ford, did something spectacularly creative and gutsy. They filed an appeal of Bowen's original sentence, arguing that the victim's Bill

of Rights was violated when Judge Mark Lee Dennis accepted Bowen's plea before hearing from Bowen's victims. Chloe and Sarah argued that the process is essentially meaningless when judges accept plea deals before hearing from victims and their families who have a right to weigh in. So typically victims are not heard from in plea deals until right before the sentencing phase when they're allowed to give impact statements to the judge for him to consider. Chloe and Sarah were like, that's great, but why not hear from the victims before agreeing to accept a reduction in charges? Because here's the thing. In Bowen's case, the prosecution practically collaborated with the defense team because

the prosecutor, David Miller, was seeking a nomination to become a judge. And who holds that power? State legislators. And who is representing Bowen? A lawyer-legislator with considerable power in Columbia. Like I said, it was a novel strategy and a really good point. Victims should be able to weigh in before a judge accepts a reduction in charges. Unfortunately, the appeals court dismissed Chloe's case, which was argued this past September.

In a ruling that puts a lot of Bowens and the system's dirty deeds on the record, the court said, although we deeply sympathize with the victims of Bowen Turner's violent crimes, there is no practical remedy this court can offer. The only parties withstanding to appeal Turner's sentence are Turner and the state. Meaning, Chloe and Sarah cannot appeal the sentencing,

but the state can. The state, the prosecution, can listen to the smart and thoughtful argument that Sarah Ford made on this issue and they can take up this cause. They can argue that this is, as it turns out, a violation of victims' rights when judges accept plea deals that include a reduction in charges before hearing from the victims.

But they won't do that. Well first, David Miller advocated for that sentence, but generally speaking, this system works for the prosecution. Victims are inconveniences to too many prosecutors, and they don't like hearing that because they all like to say, I do this for the victims. But the system changes them. And it's only their actions that matter. And in this case, the actions were clear. Bowen Turner paid Brad Hutto so he could avoid prison. And David Miller seemed perfectly willing to grant Brad that wish. So what now, right? Great question.

This ruling came out after this episode was already done, but we plan to take a closer look at it and talk to Sarah to see what can be done to make it so that judges can't accept reductions in charges without hearing from victims first. That said, before we get started on the Micah Francis case, let's talk a little bit about last week's episode of True Sunlight and the Evelyn Califf story. The octogenarian whose house, Wayne Miller, seemed very intent on getting sold so that

he could receive payback for an alleged $48,200 loan he had allegedly given to Evelyn in 2016 and 17 in five payments over seven weeks. Like we said, that's a very odd loan, right? Also odd was to find out that the property Wayne was trying to get sold out from under Evelyn by seeking intervention from state and federal courts ended up being sold to attorney Regina Ward in 2022. In 2024, as you know, Regina represented Micah Francis in her pending divorce from churchy business bro, JP Miller. And she subsequently represented Micah's family in their fight to keep JP from serving

as personal representative of Micah's estate, which it's worth mentioning here that according to the probate court files, Micah's estate which it's worth mentioning here that according to the probate court files Micah's estate doesn't have any money in it, but in this case being personal representative or PR Has a bigger significance than in most cases which we'll talk about in a second after the episode aired Attorney ward contacted reporter and researcher Beth Braden. She told Beth that we had published incorrect information in our episode, that she wanted to talk to Beth about it, and that she had documents, presumably ones that would show

why we were allegedly wrong. Now, a little about the correction policy at Lunashark Media. We correct all errors of fact. That means if we got a fact wrong or if our opinions were drawn from incorrect information, we will correct that as soon as possible after we've been made aware of it. If it's a minor error or an error that needs immediate attention and we've been made aware of it, we'll go back and correct it in the episode. But if it requires more explanation, we'll make a point of talking about it in the next

episode as we're doing here. You might have noticed that this doesn't happen often, if at all. People might not agree with our interpretations, but we do get our facts straight. You also might have noticed that I said errors of fact, not disputes over opinion or esoteric technicalities. Anyway, when we heard that we might have gotten something wrong, we were prepared to make a change in the episode that had just been published, but turns out we didn't get anything wrong.

However, Regina's position is different from ours, and she does contend that we're wrong. So again, Regina is a lawyer and a licensed real estate agent. In 2022, when she went to buy Evelyn's property on the Intracoastal Waterway in Myrtle Beach, she was in a sense blocked from purchasing it by JP's daddy, Wayne Miller, the OG churchy business bro in the family.

Because ol' Wayne had put a lien on the house for the amount of that sketchy loan he allegedly gave to Evelyn. But as we pointed out last week, it was not Wayne's name that was on the lien. It was his churchy business, the Cathedral Baptist Church of the Grand Strand Incorporated that was on it. And the church was listed in the filings that were made in Marion County Courthouse, Orly County Courthouse, and the federal court, where, as we told you last week,

Evelyn had filed for bankruptcy in 2019. Wayne's name wasn't on the lien, but it was on the numerous absurd and rambling filings he made on behalf of the church in an effort to get Evelyn's household for more than it was valued in federal court and to basically get his way at all times. We read you parts of his emails last week, so if you want to relive those grumblings, check the episode 82 link in the description. That's where you'll find them. We also shared the full messages with premium members. This is all just to reiterate

what we said last week, that it's possible Regina did not know Wayne was attached to the church at the time she purchased the house. Okay, so that was just to catch you up to speed. Now let's talk about the alleged error. In last week's episode, we also said that Regina represented Micah's family in their effort to have Micah's sister, Sierra, serve as PR. As part of that effort, they had asked the church to rule that JP's transfer of the marital home, the one he had shared with Micah, to his church after Micah had filed for divorce the first time was a fraudulent conveyance. In other words, they were asking the court to rule that JP was

trying to hide assets from Micah and therefore allow the house to be considered part of Micah's estate. But like I said, this wasn't just about the estate and what was or wasn't in it. In South Carolina, by law, only one person can represent a deceased person in any wrongful death claims and that person is the personal representative, the PR. Remember when Elick Murdoch orchestrated things so that Tony Satterfield would no longer be his mother's PR and instead had a Palmetto State Bank vice president serve in that role, because that made it easier to take Gloria's settlement. It's the PR whose signature matters.

The PR is technically the client in any wrongful death lawsuit. Hit the link in the description to review chapter 51, article one of South Carolina's unannotated code of laws dealing with death by wrongful act. Our issue was that in the family's settlement with JP and the church this past summer, the family gave up the right to serve as personal representative of Micah's estate and sue anyone they believe contributed to Micah's death. Regina does not agree that they gave up the right

to serve as PR, and she does not agree that she let them give up the right to sue the police or anyone who potentially contributed to Micah's death. Here is our position. JP is the PR for Micah. That is a fact. And since that is a fact, it is not inaccurate for us to say that the family cannot sue anyone for their potential role in Micah's death because they are not the PR.

Meaning, if they wanted to right now, they would not have standing to sue the police who pretty much ignored Micah's call for help with JP's alleged stalking and harassment or the mental health professionals who helped facilitate JP's efforts to have Micah involuntarily hospitalized in February of last year or anyone else like the gun store who they might think could have played a role in Micah's demise. But Regina, who again is a lawyer, says that isn't true. Regina's contention is that it is untrue for us to tell you that Micah's family gave up the right to sue on Micah's behalf because technically anyone can sue anyone

and they could go back to the courts and petition a judge to take the PR designation away from JP and give it to one of Micah's siblings. Meaning, she is saying that Micah's family could decide if they wanted to, to go back to court and try to convince the court, which they were already doing before they settled, to take the PR designation away from JP and give it to one of her siblings. Meaning, take it away from Micah's legal heir, her crappy, estranged husband,

to whom the family already relinquished it once. They gave up the fight, right? That's what a settlement is. At the time, Regina told the public that the settlement was to avoid a long, protracted fight, which makes total sense that is a factor that every plaintiff has to take into consideration when they are deciding to settle. Is this worth the fight? Our point was and is that Micah's family does not have the right to sue on Micah's behalf in a wrongful death case in South Carolina.

And from what we are understanding about Regina's point, it's that they could have that right if they were to engage in the same fight that they were fighting until they stopped fighting it because they settled. As it stands right now, from what our legal sources, including our Cup of Justice co-host Eric Bland, have told us.

Only the PR can file a wrongful death claim by law in South Carolina. And JP is the PR. Once again, our intention in last week's episode was to explain the odd connection of Micah's divorce attorney buying a house that Wayne Miller had fought so hard to have sold out from a woman and at a price that allowed him to get paid. This was something that was being shared on social media so we did a deeper dive into it. It's that simple. Now on Robbie Harvey's YouTube show last week that came out after our episode, Regina Ward essentially said that people who are talking about this connection, and I guess meaning us, are focusing on the wrong things here.

That people, probably meaning us, should be focused on getting a coercive control law on the books. Specifically, Micah's law, which her office put together, in which she says that she is fighting to get past. And on this, she's 100% right, we do need to talk more about Micah's Law. After this break, we'll be right back. Hey there listeners, EB here and I want to tell you about a new weekly podcast that I'm hosting.

I love being a lawyer, being a speaker. I absolutely am looking forward to being an author of my book, Anything But Bland, but I'm excited to tell you that I'm launching my very own podcast called Good Skill, betting on yourself. I delve into the idea that success isn't merely about luck, but is instead achieved through honing skills and strategic efforts and planning. Each episode of Good Skill offers listeners an insightful journey into the minds of individuals who are reshaping their respective industries and their careers. Good Skill serves as a beacon of

inspiration, with a roster of interesting guests like independent journalist, media disruptor, and Couple of Justice co-host Mandy Matney. These conversations empower listeners seeking to make their mark in the world. Visit the ericbland.com website to learn more or listen wherever you get your podcasts. Listen wherever you get your podcasts. Okay, let's talk about Micah's Law real quick.

We applaud Regina Ward for taking the initiative on, we hope, getting this into the legislature and getting it passed. And we appreciate the time and care she took in June when she first presented Micah's List and Micah's law to the public. At a press briefing outside the courthouse, she seems to have put a lot of thought and work into it. And she was really smart to present it the way she did because it allowed her to take all that information that she had gotten from Micah,

Micah's family and Micah's journals and get Micah's version of her marriage to JP Miller on the public record. I'm telling you, that was a really great strategy because it not only gave much needed insight into what Micah was allegedly going through, it provided a much needed counter narrative to JP's pathetic campaign to paint himself as the perfect doting husband to a sick and mentally ill wife on social media. More than all of that, Regina brought the conversation about coercive control to the forefront. And she explained what it is, how it can be identified, and how those who participate in it can be punished. Write down to suggesting that the state require GPS ankle monitors of

defendants while at en bond. That said, we'd like to point out something about the proposed law that concerns us specifically as it relates to MICA. Now, like Regina told the reporters who gathered at the press conference in June, a coercive control law was first proposed in the South Carolina legislature in 2020 and it died three times in committee over the next few years which is not shocking because the South Carolina legislature hates women and it's not a stretch to think that individual legislators might see themselves as targets of a law like this because of their own individual abhorrent behavior. As Regina pointed out in the presser, that law wasn't thorough enough and it needs some work. So she included a list of 16

other categories of abuses that Micah allegedly had to endure in her marriage with examples. But she urged people to contact their legislators to get this law back in play in the legislature. And she wrote a long and detailed letter to state Senator Luke Rankin, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, asking for his help in improving this bill and moving it along. At the June press briefing, Regina indicated that had this law been in place when Michael was alive, it potentially could have helped her. If the law had been in place at the time, she could have reported these types of behaviors and the police would have been able to look to that particular law, assuming that when

it went to the governor for signature, that it would be in the same format or better or harsher or whatever. So I think that that is a possibility, but to say for certainty is not possible. She reiterated this idea in her letter to Senator Rankin, quote, now go back and reread Micah's list and notice that it follows the proposed law, which clearly indicates that had the bill been signed into law years ago, there is a possibility that

a warrant would have been issued for John Paul's arrest. Upon his arrest, he would have been under a no-contact order, which could have protected Micah. That arrest and no-contact order could have provided that small window she needed to escape this alleged abuse. And finally, assuming her allegations were proven, he may have been convicted of coercive control, a felony, and sentenced up to 10 years in jail," end quote.

Even though those are equivocal statements, it raises a pretty dramatic point. in jail," end quote. Even though those are equivocal statements, it raises a pretty dramatic point. If the legislature had passed this law, then maybe Micah would be alive, right? Maybe JP would have been held accountable. Here is David with the last provision of the proposed law that Regina wants the legislature to rename Mica's law.

The provisions of this section do not apply to actions taken pursuant to a legal arrangement, granting one person power or authority over another person including but not limited to power of attorney arrangements, legal guardians of the property or the property or person as provided by law, parental control of a minor child, or cases in which the person asserting control over another person believed the actions were in the best interest of the person, and the actions were another person to fear that violence would be used against them. So how would that have worked in Mike's case? JP had healthcare power of attorney over her.

J.P. had healthcare power of attorney over her. His contention to both the public, the courts, and the police was always a variation of, my wife has a history of mental health problems and I'm doing this in her best interest. And though Micah mentioned to a 911 dispatcher on February 15th that there had been an instance when J.P. put his hands on her. Violence was never really her chief complaint to police in the months leading up to her death. In that particular call, she told police that JP was in a manic state and he was a threat to himself and others,

and that he needed to be picked up immediately. She told the dispatcher, "'There's been domestic violence. He's put his hands on me.'" In other words, Micah wasn't reporting domestic violence per se, but was using past unreported violence to help support her assertion that JP needed to be picked up. This was right after Micah was released from being involuntarily hospitalized. So it really seems like

Micah was testing the police to see if they'd give her the same red carpet response that the police seemed to give JP when he initiated Micah's pickup. This is all just to say that yes, Micah feared JP and his temper. And she reportedly told her family that if she ends up dead, it's because of JP shortly before her death. But she hadn't reported any in the moment physical abuse. And that's likely because of the coerce of control abuse.

She couldn't report the alleged abuse because of the alleged abuse. Meaning there was no real record of reporting she could rely on to overcome that provision that applied to somebody who had a power of attorney over them. Micah's chief complaint to police was related to persistent harassment and stalking, allegations that were already on the record for JP with his first divorce. And there are already laws that address

those two things. And those are laws that the police didn't bother to consider. And why was that? Because they believed JP and that law would have only strengthened their ability to look the other way because he had power of attorney over her. JP wasn't having Micah harassed and followed by a private investigator. No, that private investigator was following her so she wouldn't buy a gun because of her mental illness. Jeep, he didn't steal Micah's car. Nope, he was just protecting his unstable wife from selling the car in one of her manic states that happens once a year because of her mental illness. See here, officer, see the document that shows I have legal control over Micah's healthcare

because of her mental condition? Okay, sure. If Micah were in the position she was almost in at the time of her death, with a lawyer who could bring attention to the alleged abuses and fight for charges to be brought against JP, and this law were already in place,

then maybe with a lawyer, she could have assembled all the evidence she needed in a neat package so police would understand what they were looking at and actually do their jobs. But the way the proposed law is written, the one that Regina wants to be renamed Mike's law, is a little scary when the power of attorney that Mike assigned in December 2022, immediately after being released from the hospital that JP had tried to prevent her from being admitted to, was signed when she was vulnerable and allegedly experiencing coercive control. Not to mention,

just a month later, she and JP were no longer living together. So in other words, how does that law protect women whose husbands or partners have some sort of legal power over them, where the coercive control was allegedly used to create that legal power, to bolster it? The way we're reading that proposed law seems to make it harder for women. Again, we applaud Regina for putting Micah's List on the record and taking a big first step to trying to get this bill renamed and passed with better, stronger wording. But is that it? Is that where it gets left?

A press conference and a letter? In an interview with Robbie Harvey, Regina said that she tells everyone who comes to her office about Micah's Law that there's a petition people can sign at her reception desk. So there's that, I guess. I don't know. She said people need to focus on Micah's Law, but we need to know how. Because writing turf letters to legislators isn't going to cut it. The bill needs a loud, isn't going to cut it. The bill needs a loud roaring champion. And maybe we misinterpreted things, but we thought that person was going to be Regina. Until we reread one of the last lines of her letter to Senator Rankin, if I can be of any service in any way to get Mike Isla codified. Please do not hesitate to call me. So, Senator Rankin, could you please

contact Regina Ward? It's time to get this going. Anyway, one more update. JP is up to something y'all and it is as dumb as you would expect. He really seems to be indulging some kind of kink he has with this latest antique. He seems to love nothing more than acting on an impulsive, half-baked, chaotic idea that gives him a full sense of having his finger on a trigger lording whatever low-rent shred of power he thinks he has over anyone who dares to cross him. Last Friday, he filed 10 civil cases in Myrtle Beach Magistrate Court, in what other states might refer to as small claims court. This is added to the defamation case he filed against paralegal Melissa Mancari in Circuit Court this past September. So JP Miller is now a plaintiff in 11 cases. And because he's filed these complaints in Magistrate Court, the maximum amount of damages

he can claim is $7,500 per case. But he has not served a single defendant yet, including Melissa Mancari, with his summons and complaints according to the Horry County Public Index, as well as individual defendants we've checked in with. While it's not entirely unusual for it to take some time to serve people with a lawsuit, it's still strange to us that, in the case of the most recent 10 complaints, the defendants who physically went to the courthouse to get a copy of whatever was filed against them were told they'd have to wait until a process server comes to them. So it looks like they're all just waiting to find out.

Now the 10 people JP Miller is suing are Melissa Pfeiffer, who has attended the protests. Jan Lancaster, a TikTok creator who lives near JP's house. He's someone JP has called the police on before. Jan also live streamed the protests outside of Solid Rock. Ken Young, who is reportedly a former church member who has spoken out publicly about JP since Micah's death. Courtney Anne, who is reportedly connected to Jan Lancaster. Samuel Adam Rickman, who has been very active on the Justice for Micah Facebook page. Sandra K. Karen, who is the protester that JP allegedly assaulted in November. Tracy Ann Hermith, who is very active in the Justice

for Micah Facebook groups. Alexandra Golden-Quozzo, who is reportedly a protestor. Kyler Marlow, who says she attended elementary school with Micah and who was one of the original content creators posting about Micah in the days and months after Micah's death. And Annie Plagenborg, who is a content creator and is active in the Micah Facebook groups. If there's a theme here, it's that all of these people have exercised their First Amendment rights in opposition to JP's narrative

about Micah's life and death. Actually, there's another theme. Every one of these people are listed in JP's filings as having Myrtle Beach addresses, even though at least three of them don't live in Myrtle Beach. For one of the people who don't live in Myrtle Beach addresses, even though at least three of them don't live in Myrtle Beach. For one of the people who don't live in Myrtle Beach, JP listed their address as that of a Myrtle Beach gay bar.

And for another person who told us that not only don't they live in Myrtle Beach, JP also got their name wrong, JP has that complaint being delivered to a Weight Watchers clinic. Seems like a juvenile prank, right? I bet he thinks he is especially clever with that. But the joke's on him because the filing fee for each of these complaints is like $70. If he's just filing these for fun, what a waste of money.

This is all to say that there's limited information available right now as to what JP is up to here. But it's worth noting who's not on the list. For instance, Kyler Marlow was very publicly working as a team with a private investigator who went by the initials DB. DB, we're told, is Daniel Barnett. And as far as we can tell, neither Kyler nor Daniel has been very involved in this case for quite some time. So I'm not sure what that means in terms of us being able to make a guess as to why JP

is suing these people. Is he trying for defamation, harassment? What is he accusing these people of doing that's cost him a loss of up to $7,500 each? Needless to say, we're going to keep an eye on that situation because there's no way it's not going to be ridiculous. Okay, so now onto part two of last week's episode, meaning more shocking emails to share with you that show the strange and increasingly suspicious relationship between J.P. Miller and the Horry County Police. The first email that we'd like to talk about

that we got back in a recent FOIA is from November, 2022, which was essentially the big breaking point for JP and Micah's marriage. If you remember, JP and Micah had a horrific fight that started with something most people would consider to be very small. JP allegedly asked Micah over and over again if she would kiss a girl, who would that be? According to Micah's best friend Charlotte, Micah said to JP jokingly that she guessed it would be Charlotte because she trusts Charlotte and she knows that Charlotte wouldn't tell anyone.

it would be Charlotte because she trusts Charlotte and she knows that Charlotte wouldn't tell anyone. This answer apparently enraged JP, who was becoming increasingly jealous of the friendship that Micah had with Charlotte. Remember, friends pose a big threat to alleged abusers like JP, and this explosive fight seems to be evidence of that. Remember in episodes 52 and 53,

we told you about the series of shocking events that took place after this fight. How Micah fled to her sister's house across the state. How JP spent an evening threatening to come there, quote unquote armed and ready to take her back. How the police visited JP's home because he was threatening to take his own life. And ultimately, when Micah's sister took Micah

to the hospital, JP did not want Micah to be admitted to the mental hospital. And that was just 12 days after the big blowup. So that brings us to November 28th, the day that Micah went to the hospital and JP intervened. In the same day, we either have JP's attorney and JP's attorney staffer signing a healthcare power of attorney form saying they witnessed Micah's signature

of it, which didn't occur until eight days later. Or there's a possibility JP had the attorney immediately draw up forms in a hot-headed effort to wrestle power back from Micah, from her sister Anna, and from the police over Micah's hospitalization. Either way, the Horry County incident report from November 28th notes that as officers

tried to speak to Micah, JP interrupted her answers and quote, would not allow her to speak to officers. According to the report, hospital employees told officers that Micah appeared to be extremely weak when she was inside the building, and she told them that she had passed out in both the lobby of the hospital and the bathroom. According to the report, Micah's sister, Anna, had driven Micah to the hospital to get mental health help. Anna told police that JP pulled up, went inside the building, and wouldn't allow Micah to

get the help that she needed. Instead, according to Micah's sister, he brought Micah out of his truck and wouldn't let her out. The report says, quote, while away, JP allegedly had a mental breakdown and stated that he was suicidal, resulting in Myrtle Beach Police Department conducting welfare checks on him. Anna told police that JP, quote, had been mentally abusing Micah for an extended period of time by not allowing her to sleep, eat, or contact her family. The officer noted that all parties were separated, allowing Horry County Fire and Rescue the

opportunity to speak to Micah alone to determine if she needed to go to the hospital. According to the report, JP was, quote, unhappy about being separated and made a call to who he stated was Lieutenant Wilson. The officer noted that Micah decided to voluntarily go with fire and rescue for a mental health evaluation. But back to that call to Lieutenant Wilson, we believe that is Heather Wilson, the Horry County officer who JP blamed in an email to her boss in May 2020 that she caused Micah's death.

She is also the mother of DJ Brummet, the man who went to the beach with Micah in March and who JP had followed by PIs and then berated afterward. Heather was also a member of Solid Rock in 2022, and sometime after this incident, it appeared that she started to see JP for who he is. But back in 2022, Heather was a high ranking police officer who JP thought he could call for favors. And of course he did.

She is the lieutenant he was threatening the officers on scene with, according to the report. As in he was saying, you will be in big trouble for not doing what I want you to do. So the next day in November, 2022, JP emailed Heather Wilson's alleged boss, Brian Strickland about the incident.

I'll have David read this. This is Pastor JP Miller. Yesterday, I called Heather Wilson to find out what my legal rights were when trying to tell my wife goodbye while she was getting in an ambulance. Heather told me to calm down and listen to whatever the officers around me are saying, and that was the end of the conversation as I remember. She stayed on the phone with me to make sure I was in fact doing as she asked. Later that day, she called me back to check on me

and ask about my wife. Thank you, capital P, capital J, lowercase p. Capital P, capital J, P. He signed it PJP, LOL. I'm sorry, but I giggle at people who introduce themselves with their work title capitalized before their name. Like, okay, we get that you want people to take you seriously.

And then he took it another step by ending it with PJP, the abbreviation. I wonder what people would say to me if I started emails with this is podcaster, Manny Matney and then signed off PMM. Anyway, as y'all can clearly tell, JP told a different version of events than the police did. And it's interesting that JP still believed

he could fix this mess he made for the police officer. He clearly wanted to stay on his side and he thought that he could fix all of this with a little email from PJP Strickland replied a few hours later saying received. Thank you. Then here is what JP said next I'm so sorry about this But I assure you when my wife gets out of the hospital, these complaints, or whatever they are, will be removed once she speaks to her family. When we first heard of JPA calling Heather in November, 2022,

and threatening the responding officers with her name, we weren't sure what, if any, role Heather Wilson had in this. So we filed a FOIA for her personnel file. In May, we asked for the following, the complete personnel file for HCPD officer Heather Wilson, including internal affairs documentation, promotions, demotions, commendations, and disciplinary records.

In June, we got her personnel file and there was nothing in it relating to that incident or MICA or JP. In November, we filed a more specific request, this time asking for any and all citizen complaints, including final disposition of the complaints, filed against HCPD officers Heather Wilson and or Brian Wilson between November 1st, 2022 and today. All we got back then were a couple of internal affairs documents that again,

were unrelated to that incident or Micah or JP, and they were documents that we already knew about because they were contained in the files from the May Foyah. This email speaks to the level of comfort JP Miller felt among high ranking officers at Horry County in 2022 that he could cause such a messy scene, drag his church members' officer status into this mess and then clean it all up with an email. The next email we received from Horry County Police was from September 2023. JP had emailed Officer Brian Wilson, who again is Heather Wilson's husband, a forwarded message from April

3 2023, from Tom Winslow, who was JP's attorney to Micah Miller. The title of that email, Miller documents, the attachments, a separation agreement between john paul and Micah Miller that was notarized and signed on April 2nd, 2023. Now more on that separation agreement in a moment. So this separation agreement is new to us. We were not aware that JP and Micah were that far along in the divorce process in April

2023, a full year before she died. The document also says that the couple had not lived together since January 5th, 2023. We knew that Micah had moved to be with family in Kansas for a few months in 2023, but we weren't aware the separation was this solidified. While there's no such thing as legal separation in South Carolina, this document was helping set the stage for their divorce. Just wanted to point out that the document had some really interesting tidbits.

Like the fact it says that both parties agreed that Micah is in good health and that Micah was unemployed. It also claims that both parties had agreed that JP gets the house since he had bought it before he was married to Micah and that Micah got to transfer the title of her 2016 Honda from Solid Rock Ministries over to herself. Oh, and this part I will have David read. John Paul owns Solid Rock Ministries and shall continue to do so free and clear from any claim by Micah. Furthermore, Micah agrees to not say anything negatively about Solid Rock Ministries, which would impair its reputation. First of all, if there were ever any questions about whether JP owns the church,

for those of y'all who keep telling us, he can't own a church, it's a nonprofit. Here's JP himself claiming to own it. All in all, the document leaves Micah with pretty much nothing but her car and the divorce while JP gets to keep all of the other assets from the church that she helped him build back up after his 2015 scandal. None of that is surprising.

However, back to our original point as to why we got this document. Why was JP sending his separation agreement to a police officer on the police officer's work email? We don't have any records of any interactions involving the police when this email was forwarded on September 24th, 2023. So what was going on there? Less than two weeks after the separation email was forwarded from JP to Brian Wilson, Micah filed for divorce. Now, this email isn't a smoking gun, but it merely shows how cozy and comfortable JP was with Horry County police in 2024 at the time of Micah's death, even after the hospital ordeal where he clearly dragged

Brian Wilson's wife, Heather, into his mess. It isn't normal to forward separation documents to police officers, so what was JP wanting to do? And will this man ever learn that emails to public officials are subject to FOIA? The answer is no. Which brings us to the next email Horry County gave us from 2024. We will already share this email with you. Sort of. Remember back in episode 63, we told you all about the shocking emails we got from South

Carolina Secretary of State Mark Hammond's office. Well this email might be a major part of this investigation. Let me explain. The reason Micah was emailing the Secretary of State is because JP allegedly would not give Micah back her newly issued notary embosser. The Secretary of State's office is in charge of certifying notary publics in South Carolina, and Micah had just been certified in January so that she could earn commissions. So Micah was reporting the loss of her and bosser.

She was understandably at her wit's end at this point. She had filed for divorce in October and was reconciling with JP when she decided enough was enough. As a result of that, and the buildup of the stress that she was experiencing, in early February she got hospitalized against her will. Then she was discharged from the hospital to find that JP had evicted her from their

home and was holding onto her car, phone, laptop, wallet, and other items. She had already reported JP for impersonating her through social media, emails, and text messages, and she was worried that he was going to use her notary and bosser to forge her name on documents. We previously discovered that on February 17th, 2024, Micah had filled out a contact form on the Secretary of State's office's website. In the subject of the message, she wrote,

John Paul Miller, in parentheses, my husband, will not tell me the location of the seal. And by seal, she means the embosser. In the message, she told the Secretary of State about what happened to her embosser and why. and she said that she had tried to report it as stolen, and had asked police to escort her to the marital property to retrieve it to no avail. So here is our AI robot, Natalie, reading Micah's email from February 2024.

An AI is a topic that comes up a lot in this story, and we are going to dive into it in another episode. My soon to be ex-husband has been trying to force me into signing a post-nup that after six years of marriage and 15 years of being an employee of Solid Rock Ministries, Inc., he's trying to leave me with nothing and he won't sign divorce papers until I agree to these terms. Because of this I have reason to believe he may try to use my seal for his gain. Also I started a charity called Dare to Care Missions and collected donations under the watch of

Solid Rock Ministries, Inc. tax-exempt and 501. And after searching for my charity in the public records I found out that Solid Rock Ministries Inc. never filed the charity and made it official. And they are sending threats to my family saying they will arrest me because they are claiming I stole $4,000 from my own charity, which I have proof that the only money that has been deposited into the charity bank account was my own funds, and it was only $159 in total. The church is also trying to make some large purchases that I believe to be illegitimate

and that would require a notarization. I am asking that you please put a hold on any document with my seal because I have never used it since the date I received it. And to also investigate the two officers that escorted me into my home since I feared for my life around my husband due to past documented gun violence, intimidation, and domestic violence. And they would not even allow me to ask my husband for the location of my notary seal. And they began shouting at me to leave my home and said they would arrest me and kick me out forcefully if I didn't leave immediately, even though I was in my own house, which is marital property. It is important to note that she sent this email from a different address ending in D2CM,

which was different from all of her other emails to the Secretary of State's office, likely because she believed that JP had control of her email at that time. How do I know that for sure? Because of what happened next. So why did this email that we have shared in the past come up again in our FOIA with Horry County Police? And why do we think that this email could be a crucial piece

of evidence in this case? Because of what was happening in February, 2024. Remember, early February is when JP ramped up his quest to get Micah admitted to the mental hospital against her will. Specifically on February 6th at 6 46 PM, JP called Horry County 911 and told them that a Sergeant Wilson told him to call about the mental health pickup order for Micah. J.P. said that Micah's location was showing that she was at Beach Church in Myrtle Beach.

The officer eventually talked to Micah by phone and she said that she was going to Gaffney to her sister Sierra's house and was not going to go back to Horry County. Nearly 6 hours after that phone call at 3.52 am, on February 7th, Micah called 911 from Buckees gas station in Florence, South Carolina. Remember, this is the call that we got from a random TikTok account, not any of our foyas. And we ended up matching that with another report to confirm that it took place on February 7th. Remember when Micah freaked out because she thought someone named Officer Wilson answered

the phone? Well, we didn't have the CAD report at the time, but this week we figured out that a dispatcher with the name of Wolfson is actually the person who took the call. Hello? Where can I dispatch Wolfson? Hey, uh, Officer Wilson? How can I help you?

I'd like to do a wellness check, Officer Wilson. Okay, what's the address? I'd like to do a wellness check, Officer Wilson. Okay, what's the address? It's Coldwater Circle. What city? Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. What's your name? What's the callback number for you? I want to see your first initial of your name, just so that whenever I call back, I get the right officer, Wilson. I'm not a police officer. You can just ask for

anybody. Uh, what was the address? One more time, please. Coldwater Circle, Florida Beach, South Carolina 295 88. Okay. Can you tell me exactly what happened? Yeah, there's a laptop there that's got naked pictures of me on it. Okay, can you tell me exactly what happened? Yeah, there's a laptop there that's got naked pictures of me on it, and there's some people staying at my house that I didn't invite into my house. And I'm out of town,

so I was just hoping there would be a wellness check and make sure there's no cars parked at my house that I don't recognize the license plate of, or if you just take down those license plate numbers for me to review later, do a wellness check and also maybe even pursue the property that I'm saying has naked pictures of me on it okay I can have an officer give you a call exactly what they can do So where are you located at right now? Buckeye's gas station in Florence. In Florence, okay.

Okay, you'll probably have to make a- Yeah, I just wanna make sure that that laptop just doesn't end up in the wrong hand. This is confusing, but also it's one of those things we need to correct. On that phone call, it wasn't Sergeant Wilson, the one who was allegedly head of Solid Rock Security, and why does a small churchy business

need a head of security anyways, by the way? But Micah's voice changed, and she clearly went into panic mode when she heard a name sounding similar to Wilson answer the phone at the police department that she feared was helping the husband that she was so terrified of. It would be like if I called Sled

during the Murdoch investigation and it sounded like someone named Murdoch answered the phone. It would be chilling and probably would have sent me into a spiral thinking all calls are coming from the inside and all of this is hopeless. Anyways, that mix up paired with the fact that JP already had Faith Green sign an order of detention that was clocked that day and sent to the police, which labeled her as a 1096 aka mental patient. All of that probably made Micah sound unstable on the phone,

when in reality, her reaction was completely understandable. And she was right to worry about her husband's interactions with an Officer Wilson, because of what we were going to share from those emails. Hang on to that thought. So, just seven hours later, after she begged for police to help her, and they didn't,

Micah was picked up at the Myrtle Beach Walmart by police and admitted to the hospital, where she stayed for the next five days. And during that time, JP allegedly gained control of Micah's cellphone, car, social media accounts, and emails. When Micah was let out of the hospital on February 12th, 2024, JP took immediate action and filed a police report accusing her of theft.

Micah had already called the police on February 15th to report that JP was impersonating her identity, had possession of her purse and wallet, and she told them she was in danger. And what did they do? Myrtle Beach Police labeled her purse and wallet, and she told them she was in danger, and what did they do? Myrtle Beach police labeled her a 1096, which is code for mental subject, and they did nothing to follow up. So when Micah was emailing the Secretary of State office

on February 17th, she was running out of options. The local police had proven to her time and time again that they believed her husband over her no matter what. Knowing that her husband was in control of her email address, Micah used a different email address when writing to the Secretary of State's office. The problem was that when Kataria Watkins, the director of notaries, wrote her back, the new email kicked back to her when she replied that she was taking the matter seriously and she told Micah to go to police. So on February 20th, Kataria Watkins did what any person would do. She emailed Micah's previous email address to let her know that they had made a note in the records about her stolen embosser so that she wouldn't be held accountable for any potential fraudulent activity involving her notary supplies.

Kataria under her email by saying she strongly encouraged Micah to consult with police and an attorney regarding the other matters. She sent this email to micahmiller777 at gmail.com which JP was clearly in possession of at 1114 a.m. that day. Because at 1119 a.m., just five minutes later, that email was forwarded to J.P. Miller's address and his wingwoman, Trisha Ross's email address. By 1140, J.P. Miller, being J.P. Miller in full panic mode, did what he always does, blame the mess he made on Micah and her alleged mental

illness. JP emailed the Secretary of State's office and Charles Randall to tell them that Micah is in no danger and that she's been at the mental hospital and hasn't come home and that her seal is perfectly safe. is perfectly safe. But here is where it gets weird. JP forwarded Micah's email that accused him of stealing her notary seal, and he forwarded the Secretary of State's office's response to Officer Brian Wilson,

who JP apparently thinks is his good old buddy boy just one hour later at 1240 a.m. February 20th. Why would he forward that email to local police? The same officer who was an elder at Solid Rock and was allegedly his chief of security. The same officer who JP oddly emailed his separation agreement documents to just a few months before. The same officer who Micah feared on a 911 call was helping JP in his quest to take down Micah, and hours later she was picked up by police and admitted to the hospital. The very next day after JP found out that Micah had messaged the Secretary of State's office and saw what she had written and intervened with his own email, JP Miller went back to

Whack-a-Maw Center for Mental Health and began the process of getting the state of South Carolina to formally institutionalize Micah. On that day, February 21st, Micah called the police again to report that her Honda was stolen. And that's when JP told the police that he and Micah were not separated, that her car was actually marital property when it was in her name only, and that basically Micah was crazy. And the officer, of course, just went with it and believed him. This is what we're talking about.

By the way, when we say that we believe there is proof showing that local police contributed to Micah's feeling of hopelessness that led to her death on April 27, 2024. At every single opportunity, both Myrtle Beach and Horry County Police Department took JP's side. And by the way, this could be important. The next day, February 22nd, the fire department was called to JP's house for a smoldering burn pit. Which is merely interesting, considering the fact that we got from these emails, on February 20th, JP appeared to be in full panic

mode when he realized that Micah alerted the Secretary of State's office of his alleged misdeeds. And it wasn't just a small fire, but it was enough to get authorities called. What was he burning on that specific day? That's an odd thing to do when your wife accused you of stealing her notary, and also alerted the Secretary of State's office that you were raising money through a charity that wasn't registered, right? And a really odd thing to do after you felt concerned enough about the accusation to email

your alleged police buddy. Right? So these emails, they fill in very important gaps in this timeline. A timeline that leads us to say this for certain. JP Miller made a number of extreme moves in the months leading up to Micah's death to close her world and remind her how few options she had to get away. And police helped JP in this endeavor to make Micah feel

hopeless and utterly alone, whether they meant to or not. The police emails could simply show how comfortable JP felt with local police, forwarding multiple emails to officers that don't appear to have anything to do with local police matters. He sent police email attachments with no accompanying note, as if the meaning of the attachments were already made clear over the phone. Maybe Brian Wilson did nothing with those emails. We didn't receive any emails where he responded, or maybe he was smart enough

to not respond over his work email. We know from the emails and all of the calls between JP, Micah, and Horry County Police, that they absolutely treated JP with a level of deference that could have saved Micah's life if they actually listened to her. In that February 7th call to Horry County Police, when Micah was trying to tell quote unquote Officer Wilson that her husband had naked photos of her on her laptop and she was worried about that laptop quote unquote getting into the

wrong hands, which is why she asked Officer Wilson what his first initial was. She was concerned that the wrong police officer could have used evidence on that laptop somehow against her. And when she said naked photos, at the time I first read that, I imagined something a lot more innocent than what I fear could be going on here. Because again, remember the accusations in Mica's List. Remember how Mica's List accused JP of forcing her to submit to humiliating sexual acts that disgusted her and hurt her. Remember how Micah's List said that JP allegedly forced her to perform sexual acts against

her will and demanded that she watch him in sexual acts with others and forced her to sit still so others could touch her body against her will. Remember how we reported that according to Micah and other sources, JP had possession of sexually explicit photos and videos of Micah. And this was something that really, really worried her. What if she was talking to that officer about more than naked photos? about more than naked photos. What if it was so much worse? As we stated in our proposed theory in episode 78, a woman like Micah, who found no help from the police

every time she reported her estranged husband for stalking and harassment, might have had nothing left in her mental reserves if she were to see that a sexually explicit video of her would be posted somewhere online. Is that what happened before her death? Micah ran out of hope for law enforcement ever helping her. However, we still have hope

that the FBI will come through in her death. We know from sources that the FBI's investigation is still very much active, and we hope we hear more from them soon. Stay tuned, stay pesky, and stay in the sunlight. True Sunlight is a Lunashark production created by me, Manny Matney, and co-hosted by journalist Liz Farrell. Learn more about our mission and membership at lunasharkmedia.com. Interruptions provided by Luna and Joe Pesky.

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