Docs show church of Mica Miller’s husband owns $430K plane, millions in assets as family mulls lawsuit

By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Tuesday, May 21, 2024

As the family of Mica Miller, the wife of Pastor John-Paul Miller of Solid Rock at Market Common in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, mull a wrongful death lawsuit aimed at her husband after her suicide, a new report shows the church owns millions in assets, including a private aircraft estimated to worth around $430,000.

Even though only about 30 people showed up for worship service at the embattled church last weekend, The Daily Mail reports that the church still has some $5.9 million in assets, including four properties and a 2007 Cessna SR-22 purchased in January 2023.

While local investigators in North Carolina ruled that the mentally troubled 30-year-old pastor's wife died by suicide after she was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head at Lumber River State Park in Robeson County, on April 27, her family has alleged that Pastor Miller's abusive conduct likely contributed to her death. 

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They maintain that his abuse pushed her over the edge as she sought to escape their marriage. Now, they are exploring a wrongful death lawsuit, according to the family's attorney, Regina Ward. The pastor has denied abusing his wife.

"I've actually been retained to look into that," Ward told The Post and Courier. "It would take a lot to put that together, but there's certainly intentional infliction of emotional distress everywhere."

Ward, who had represented Mica Miller in her bid to separate from her husband before her death, is now trying to help her family get custody of her marital property. But Pastor Miller is fighting that push.

In a May 7 filing on behalf of Mica Miller's younger sister, Sierra Francis, Ward asked for the vehicles Mica Miller normally drove, her firearms and her electronics. Her family also seeking a restraining order against Pastor Miller to keep him from harassing them or releasing any provocative photos of his late wife. The family also wants Pastor Miller to pay for a forensic accountant evaluation.  

Francis accused Pastor Miller and Solid Rock of "colluding" to "defraud and deprive" Mica Miller of her fair share of their marital home after he sold it to the church, according to The Daily Mail. The church's four properties have a taxable value of $5.59 million.

Tom Winslow, John-Paul Miller's attorney in probate court, told The Post and Courier that the pastor should be in charge of his late wife's estate and not her family members. Because Mica Miller did not leave a will, he contends that her husband is entitled to represent her estate.

Though heavy suspicion has been cast over Mica Miller's death, and the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office have both been contacted about the case, officials in North Carolina say there has been no change regarding her cause of death.

"Our office has not been given anything with regards to this case other than we've been told by the sheriff's department it was a suicide," Matt Scott, the district attorney for Robeson County told newspaper. "The sheriff's office determined there was no criminal action done."