‘We’re not seeing grief:’ Body language expert says John-Paul Miller forced sadness in wife’s viral death announcement
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that John-Paul Miller is still an employee of Solid Rock Church and has not been fired.
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) — A now infamous clip of Solid Rock Church Pastor John-Paul Miller announcing the death of his wife Mica from the pulpit of Solid Rock Church just a day after she died reveals more about him than he intended to show, a body language expert said.
“We’re not seeing any grief here. We’re not seeing what we call adaptors, the things we use to self-soothe,” Scott Rouse told NewsNation on Tuesday night. “He’s got what’s supposed to be tears happening, that’s not happening. He’s got no tissues with him, his nose isn’t running … these are all the classic cues of someone who is faking an emotion.”
Mica, 30, was found dead at Lumber River State Park on April 27 in what authorities have deemed a suicide. News13 has been investigating circumstances of her death amid well-documented reports of abuse and her pending divorce from John-Paul.
They were both active at the Market Common church owned by Solid Rock Ministries. John-Paul was released from his ministerial duties shortly after Mica’s death was announced. News13 learned Wednesday that John-Paul is still technically an employee of Solid Rock Church and has not been fired.
When asked by News13, a church leader would not say why Miller was released or comment further on Miller leaving the church.
Rouse, who’s trained with the FBI and U.S. Department of Defense, said John-Paul feigned bereavement in addressing the congregation. A tell-tale “grief muscle” in his forehead never appeared, and his voice was “too clean” as he explained Mica’s death.
“This is one of those things that shows so many things that are wrong with him. I’m actually going to use this in training,” Rouse said.
John-Paul mentioned to congregants that Mica was struggling with mental illness at the time of her death, and was unable to get medication.
“He’s qualifying what happened to her. It’s horrible, but it’s really good when you want to show the body language of what shouldn’t be happening when someone’s grieving,” Rouse said.
News13 has reached out to John-Paul Miller and attorneys representing him. He has not commented or responded to our requests for comments and an interview with John-Paul Miller.
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Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here.
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