Ohio Republican, U.S. Republican Max Miller. (Photo by Graham Stokes for the Ohio Capital Journal. Only repost photo with the original article.)
Ohio Republican Max Miller is currently involved in two separate legal battles with his ex-wife and ex-girlfriend over domestic violence allegations. Miller declined to comment Friday but has previously denied all claims of abuse.
Stephanie Grisham, former Trump White House press secretary, filed a lawsuit against Miller in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court. She claims Miller, a Republican who represents Ohio’s 7th District in Congress, violated their confidentiality agreement by accusing her of lying about his harassment.
“You are responsible for your own actions,” said Marc Dann, Grisham’s lawyer.
Grisham dated Miller in 2019 and 2020, and she accused him of domestic violence. In a 2021 Washington Post article, she wrote about how the “relationship became abusive,” was “physical” with her, and had “anger issues and a tendency toward violence.” Although she never mentioned Miller’s name, the congressman claimed it was defamatory because it was common knowledge that she had dated him.
Miller denied all allegations and sued her for defamation. Court documents show he dropped the case and the two signed a non-disclosure agreement stating they would not talk about each other in a way that could “reasonably be construed as disparaging.”
“The settlement included certain promises that Congressman Miller made to our client Stephanie Grisham, but those promises were broken,” Dann said.
Affairs
In a separate courtroom, Miller’s ex-wife, Emily Moreno, also accused him of physical and emotional abuse as well as drug utilize. She is the daughter of Ohio Republican senator Bernie Moreno.
Miller denied the allegations, once again suing for defamation.
In court documents, he argued that he never “battered Moreno by pouring boiling water on her in front of their minor daughter.”
Since they began their divorce and custody battle in 2023, the couple has been embroiled in a tense legal process.
Although Moreno and her team declined to comment, her lawyer, Subodh Chandra, pointed us to her most recent court filings. Her father, a senator, did not respond to comment.
“This lawsuit is the latest chapter in Congressman Miller’s long-established pattern of weaponizing his power and wealth to crush critics, intimidate accusers, and silence victims of his own misconduct,” Chandra wrote in a court document.
Moreno is seeking to dismiss the defamation case, citing a modern Ohio law that seeks to protect citizens from frivolous lawsuits designed to “silence free speech on matters of public concern,” Chandra wrote.
Miller and his team say he faces reputational damage because of her allegations, which “have spread like wildfire, leaving a lasting impression on millions of people around the world,” his lawsuit states.
Miller’s team said he was never charged and accuses his ex-wife and her lawyer of running a smear campaign.
“Defendants engaged in a defamatory campaign against plaintiff intended to smear his character, undermine his chances for re-election to Congress, and falsely portray him as an abusive and abusive father and husband,” Miller’s filing says.
He also accused Moreno of having mental health issues and instability. In response to the defamation lawsuit, Moreno provided photos confirming the bruises on her body.
In an attempt to defend himself in the court battle with Moreno, Dann said Miller violated his NDA with Grisham.
“You can’t get around the obligation to tell the truth, maintain confidentiality and not disparage someone by simply quoting someone else,” Dann said.
Miller posted an audio conversation on social media. He wrote that Moreno admits that “everything Stephanie Grisham claims is fabricated.” Moreover, in a television interview with Spectrum News 1, he stated that the allegations of harassment were false.
Case Western Reserve University criminal justice professor Mike Benza said this could constitute a violation of the NDA.
“He should not have said anything about his relationship with her, the nature of the allegations or her credibility,” Benza said.
Grisham’s team says she tried to handle the matter privately, but Miller and his team ignored them.
Should politicians sign NDAs from the beginning? Probably not, but it will always happen, Benza said.
“It is a tool commonly used by people in positions of power who can use their position or financial status to hide underlying problems that are happening,” the professor continued.
Some Democrats began calling for Miller to step down. So far, no prominent Republican has achieved this.
“Husbands and wives sometimes yell at each other and yell and things like that,” said Republican strategist Terry Casey. “We don’t know exactly what did or didn’t happen in this case.”
Casey doesn’t think the lawsuits will affect his re-election bid this fall.
“People fundamentally vote for what is in their best interest and what affects them and their wallets,” Casey said.
While Miller declined to comment, he has previously denied all allegations.
“I think voters have to draw their own conclusions,” Dann said. “It is certainly unusual that in a very public way there are two different relationships where there are allegations of domestic violence in both cases.”
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This article was originally published on News5Cleveland.com and are published in the Ohio Capital Journal under a content sharing agreement. Unlike other OCJ articles, it is not available for free republication on other news outlets because it is owned by WEWS in Cleveland.
