A woman has claimed she was raped when she was a minor by controversial pastor John-Paul Miller in a lawsuit filed yesterday in Horry County, South Carolina.

The woman, who identifies as “Jane Doe,” alleges she was raped in 1998 by Miller when she was just 15 years old. She said she had repressed memories of the assault until they resurfaced in 2023, when Miller allegedly sexually assaulted her again.

In the 43-page complaint, Doe states that Miller and his father, Reverend Reginald Wayne Miller, engaged in “sexual abuse and predatory conduct” that targeted minors for decades.

Doe, who now lives in Indiana, also named the Miller’s affiliated religious organizations in her suit, including Solid Rock Ministries and Cathedral Baptist Church, which is now known as All Nations Cathedral Church. The organizations are all located in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

“For years, (the Millers) have presented themselves as devout religious leaders. They built their reputations in the Myrtle Beach community and beyond as men of faith, dedicated to spreading God’s word and training future church leaders. But this image was a lie,” the lawsuit states. “They used their positions of power to manipulate and exploit vulnerable victims while concealing their actions from the public.”

Doe claims that Reginald Miller actively hid, suppressed, and destroyed reports of John-Paul Miller’s predatory and inappropriate behavior. Church leaders at their affiliated ministries engaged in this, as well, ensuring that John-Paul remained in leadership for decades.

“The churches and their related entities operated without adequate protections for minors, creating an environment where abuse could thrive,” the lawsuit notes. “This was not accidental—it was part of a calculated plan to groom victims while simultaneously gaining the community’s trust and financial support.”

Doe is seeking a trial by jury and damages on grounds of negligence, civil conspiracy, assault and battery, and infliction of emotional distress.

John-Paul has been embroiled in controversy since his wife’s suicide in April 2024, The Roys Report (TRR) previously reported.

Mica Miller, 30, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in North Carolina. Mica’s death garnered national attention, after her husband delivered a bizarre eulogy and family members claimed that John Paul had abused Mica. Shortly before her death, the couple had initiated divorce proceedings.

TRR reached out to Miller’s attorney, Randall Long, for more information but he declined to comment.

Doe is represented by Randall Hood, an attorney who is also taking on a series of lawsuits against MorningStar Ministries.

Miller “took full advantage” of Doe

Doe said a 2023 assault from Miller caused her to recall an assault from decades again.

In 2023, Doe encountered Miller at Myrtle Beach. He reached in as if to hug her and then “shoved his hand down her pants, touching her genitals without consent,” according to the complaint.

Doe said she tried to brush it off because she was scared. However, a half hour later, Doe and Miller got into an argument about him using the title “pastor” to justify sexual misconduct.

Miller allegedly responded to her and said, “No man is without sin and temptation. God understands that.”

This encounter left Doe “reeling” and ultimately “triggered repressed memories” of an earlier assault, the complaint said.

Doe remembered that in July 1998, Miller assaulted her when she was 15 and he was 19 years old. The assault occurred on a Sunday morning at Cathedral Baptist Church, which Miller’s father led.

Miller allegedly forced Doe into his father’s office and then “became aggressive, physically overpowering Plaintiff and forcing her against the wall,” the complaint stated.

Doe struggled and pleaded with Miller to stop. He instead moved her to his truck, which was parked outside the church. He raped her there, according to the complaint.

The complaint states that Miller, “an adult man in a position of authority within the church, took full advantage of Plaintiff’s youth, inexperience, and vulnerability to commit this heinous act.” 

Doe explains in the complaint that she was overcome by shock, shame, and fear. The trauma of the event likely caused her to lose her memory of it, the complaint notes.

In the months following the alleged assault, Doe struggled with depression, social withdrawal, and declining academic performance.

The lawsuit does not mention whether Doe has contacted law enforcement regarding either alleged assault.

Ministries failed to have “common-sense safeguards”

The suit also claims that Miller and his father led churches that had structures that failed to prevent the sexual abuse of minors.

The Miller family’s involvement in ministry started in the early 1970’s, when Reginald started Cathedral Bible College in Florence, South Carolina.

Reginald allegedly had to move the organization to Myrtle Beach because of sexual misconduct allegations, involving Reginald and students at the college, the lawsuit stated. The organization then changed its name to All Nations Church to “distance” itself from the prior controversies.

In 2013, All Nations Church transferred to be under John-Paul and his church, Solid Rock Ministries, which John-Paul had started in 2006.

The Millers have acted as “alter egos” of all their ministries, “effectively consolidating them into a single, unified entity that is indistinguishable from one another,” the lawsuit said. 

At their organizations, the Millers failed to implement “common-sense safeguards” against sexual abuse, according to the lawsuit. For instance, the ministries did not prohibit one-on-one unsupervised interactions between adults and minors, require background checks for staff and volunteers, or establish mandatory reporting protocols for suspected abuse.

“Defendants misrepresented the safety of the church to minors and their families,” the lawsuit writes. “By promoting the church as a place of trust and spiritual guidance while neglecting to put adequate protective measures in place, Defendants knowingly placed minors at risk of harm.”

Court filings of ex-wives back up lawsuit

The lawsuit supports its claims of the ministries’ unsafe environments through past court filings.

The lawsuit cites two sworn affidavits—one from Alison Williams, John-Paul’s ex-wife, and another from Susan Miller, Reginald Wayne’s ex-wife.

In Williams’ 2024 affidavit, she asserts that John-Paul previously confessed to her that he had been sexually inappropriate with several underage female members at Solid Rock Ministries. He also allegedly told her he had paid for prostitutes.

He allegedly blamed his behavior on his own childhood sexual abuse from his father.

Williams’ testimony also noted that Solid Rock church leadership was aware of allegations of sexual misconduct against John-Paul and ordered him to enroll in a sexual addiction rehabilitation program. However, Williams claimed John-Paul did not complete the program.

In Susan Miller’s affidavit, she corroborates John-Paul’s claims that Wayne was abusive. Susan details how Wayne physically and emotionally abused his family.

In Doe’s lawsuit, she expands on this information. Doe’s suit states that Wayne’s “obsession with power and control extended beyond his immediate family and into the church, where he engaged in inappropriate relationships with young men and women, many of whom were vulnerable members of the congregation.” 

John-Paul had “deeply troubled” relationship with Mica

Additionally, Doe’s lawsuit draws further attention to the controversial death of John-Paul’s wife, Mica. 

According to the complaint, Mica Miller’s relationship with (John-Paul Miller) was “deeply troubled,” and her suspicious death led to increased scrutiny of her husband’s character and past actions. 

The lawsuit did not accuse John-Paul of wrongdoing in connection to Mica’s death, but it does suggest that her passing “exemplified the power and control he exercised over women in the church.”

Since his wife’s death, John-Paul has continued to make headlines.

In the past year, numerous protests have been held, crying “Justice for Mica.”  In November, John-Paul Miller was arrested for assaulting one of these protesters.

That same month, John-Paul Miller shut down his church, Solid Rock Ministries, and started Mercy Church.

Liz Lykins is a correspondent covering religion news for The Roys Report, WORLD Magazine, and other publications.