COLUMBUS, Ohio — Congressman Max Miller is now in two different legal battles with his ex-wife and ex-girlfriend related to allegations of domestic violence. Miller declined to comment Friday, but has previously denied all claims of abuse.
Stephanie Grisham, former White House press secretary for Donald Trump, filed a lawsuit against Miller in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas. She is arguing that Miller, the Republican representing District 7 in Congress, broke their nondisclosure agreement by accusing her of lying about being abused by him.
"You're accountable for your own actions," Marc Dann, Grisham's attorney, said.
Grisham dated Miller in 2019 and 2020, and she accused him of domestic violence. She wrote about how “the relationship turned abusive,” he was “physical” with her and had “anger issues and a violent streak,” in a 2021 Washington Post op-ed. Although she never named Miller, the congressman said it was libelous since it was widely known that she had dated him.
Miller denied all allegations and sued her for defamation. According to court documents, he dropped the case and both signed a nondisclosure agreement, saying they would not speak 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, and those promises were broken," Dann said.
Cases
In a separate courtroom, Miller’s ex-wife, Emily Moreno, also accused him of physical and emotional abuse, as well as drug use. She is the daughter of Republican U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno.
Miller denied the allegations, once again suing for defamation.
He argued in court documents that he never “committed battery on Moreno by hurling boiling water on her — in front of their minor daughter.”
The pair has been caught in a tense litigation since they started their divorce and custody battle in 2023.
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Although Moreno and her team declined to comment, her attorney, Subodh Chandra, pointed us to her latest court filings. Her father, the senator, didn't respond to comment.
"This lawsuit is the latest chapter in Congressman Miller’s well-established pattern of wielding his power and his fortune as weapons to crush his critics, intimidate his accusers, and silence the victims of his own misconduct," Chandra wrote in a court document.
Moreno is trying to get the defamation case dismissed, using a new Ohio law that is meant to protect citizens from frivolous lawsuits intended to "silence free speech on matters of public concern," Chandra wrote.
Miller and his team claim that due to her allegations, he is facing reputational damage that has "spread like wildfire, leaving lasting impressions on millions of individuals worldwide," his court filing states.
He has never had charges filed against him, Miller's team said, and accuse the ex-wife and her attorney of running a smear campaign.
"Defendants engaged in a defamatory campaign against Plaintiff to malign his character, undermine his odds at re-election to Congress and falsely portray him as a violent and abusive father and husband," Miller's filing said.
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He also accused Moreno of having mental health issues and instability. As part of a response to the defamation suit, Moreno provided photo evidence of bruises on her body.
While trying to defend himself in his court battle with Moreno, Dann said he violated his NDA with Grisham.
"You can't get around an obligation to tell the truth and to be confidential and to not disparage somebody by simply quoting somebody else," Dann said.
On social media, Miller uploaded an audio conversation. He wrote that Moreno admits 'Everything alleged by Stephanie Grisham was fabricated.'” Also, in a TV interview with Spectrum News 1, he said the allegations of abuse aren’t true.
Case Western Reserve University criminal law professor Mike Benza said this may violate the NDA.
"He's not supposed to say anything about his relationship with her or about the nature of the allegations or her credibility," Benza said.
Grisham's team says she tried to settle this privately, but Miller and his team ignored them.
Should politicians be signing NDAs to begin with? Probably not, but that will always happen, Benza said.
"It is a tool that is generally used by people who have power, who can use either their position or their financial status to hide the underlying issues that are going on," the professor continued.
Some Democrats have started calling for Miller to step down. So far, no prominent Republicans have.
"Husbands and wives sometimes shout and yell at each other, and those kind of things," Republican strategist Terry Casey said. "We don't know exactly what did or didn't happen in this case."
Casey doesn't think the lawsuits will impact his reelection bid this fall.
"People, in essence, mostly vote for what's in their interest and what affects them and their wallets," Casey said.
While Miller declined to comment, he has previously denied all allegations.
"I think the voters have to draw their own conclusions," Dann said. "Certainly, it's unusual for there to be two different relationships in a very public way, both of which there are allegations of domestic violence."
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