This article discusses suicide. If you or someone you know has thoughts of suicide, please call the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
Mica Miller’s family is speaking up about her troubled marriage following her untimely death. Her siblings allege that her husband, South Carolina pastor John-Paul “JP” Miller, had Mica involuntarily admitted to a mental health facility.
The family shares these details in the “Death of the Pastor’s Wife,” a three-part true-crime series on Netflix. The documentary explores her life, marriage, and death, which authorities deemed a suicide in April 2024. Mica’s family claims her hospitalization was part of a pattern of coercive control during her marriage.
Mica Miller was found in the water with a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and a nearby gun. The North Carolina Medical Examiner’s Office ruled her death a suicide.
The siblings allege Mica’s last hospitalization was against her will. They assert that Miller contacted a mental health facility to initiate admission without her consent.
Mica received a bipolar disorder diagnosis while engaged to Miller, who reportedly supervised her care closely. She was hospitalized several times, including shortly before their 2017 marriage. In a handwritten affidavit linked to her divorce filing that Fox News Digital reviewed, Mica accused Miller of emotional, sexual, spiritual, financial, and physical abuse.
While hospitalized, Miller allegedly took Mica’s vehicle, phone, and laptop, which had intimate photos. Mica reported this to the police, as discussed in the Netflix series. Miller chose not to participate in the documentary, and his legal representatives have yet to comment.
According to Netflix, the documentary “Death of the Pastor’s Wife” includes previously unseen footage and firsthand accounts from family, friends, and former church members.
Mica, aged 30, was discovered deceased at Lumber River State Park in North Carolina on April 27, 2024, two days after filing for divorce. The Robeson County Sheriff’s Office concluded her death was from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Miller has denied any involvement and faces no charges related to her death.
The pastor, however, faces federal charges for alleged actions preceding Mica’s death. A federal grand jury indicted him in December 2025 on cyberstalking and false statement charges, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina.
Charges include posting a nude photo of Mica online without permission, placing tracking devices on her car, contacting her multiple times in a day, interfering with her finances, and damaging her tires.
The indictment indicates his cyberstalking made Mica fear for her life and caused emotional distress. Authorities claim Miller lied during an investigation about damaging her tires. Evidence showed his purchase of a tire-deflation device online.
If convicted, Miller faces up to five years for cyberstalking and two years for false statements, with fines reaching $250,000. He has pleaded not guilty and is out on a $100,000 bond.
Due to ongoing protests and an FBI investigation, Solid Rock Church in Myrtle Beach closed permanently in November 2024.
Mica’s family supports proposed South Carolina Bill 702, “Mica’s Law,” which aims to recognize coercive control, including psychological, emotional, and financial manipulation, under domestic violence laws. However, it stalled in the 2026 legislative session.