‘Political cheap shot’: Horry County Sen. Rankin upset after attorney challenges lawmakers to enact ‘Mica’s Law’

HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) — A day after an attorney representing the family of Mica Miller urged South Carolina lawmakers to go to work on “coercive control” legislation aimed at helping victims of domestic violence, an Horry County Republican appeared to take offense to her comments.

“I was shocked and saddened at the news of Mica Miller’s death, and I join our community in mourning her much to short life,” state Sen. Luke Rankin said in Facebook post. “Now we await the results of any investigation by the proper authorities of possible wrongdoing.

Timeline: What’s happened so far in the death of Myrtle Beach woman Mica Miller

“Disappointingly, yesterday the family law attorney who represented Mica before her tragic death chose to use Mica’s death to take a political cheap shot at me. For the record, there is no such bill pending before the House or Senate judiciary committee, and no bill has been introduced by any member of the House or Senate since 2021.”

During a news conference Wednesday afternoon, outside the Horry County Government building in Conway, attorney Regina Ward challenged Rankin to act on legislation. State Republican Sen. Katrina Shealy of Lexington filed the most recent bill in 2021. However, it failed to make it out of the Judiciary Committee, which Rankin now leads.

“What this family wants you to do is to help this,” Ward said. “We want the coercive control bill to be looked at, taken seriously. Put some time into it and somebody make an amendment to call it Mica’s Law. Getting this law on the books will help.”

Rankin responded in the Facebook post by saying that prior to Wednesday’s news conference he had never been asked about the legislation.

“No law enforcement, victims advocate, family court judge or family law attorney — including Ms. Ward — has ever asked me to help make this bill a law,” Rankin said. “The statement or suggestion made otherwise is completely false. While I always seek ways to strengthen SC laws to protect the innocent, I realize for a bill to become law it requires action by the majority of the House, Senate, and the Governor. I stand ready to help continue to make SC and our community the place so many love to call home.”

Ward said during the news conference that Rankin has the power to get the ball rolling again on the legislation.

“[Rankin] has the ability to assign this bill to a subcommittee,” Ward said. “He has the ability to put it on the agenda and walk it all the way through. I challenge them to go back there and find it and bring it out. Let’s get this done. It is important. It is extremely important.”

News13 reported that legislation filed four years ago would have criminalized “coercive control” and established punishments of up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Since then, efforts to get such a law on the books have stalled in both chambers of the General Assembly.

Prior to Mica’s death on April 27, Ward was working to finalize her divorce from John-Paul, the founder and senior pastor at Solid Rock church in The Market Common. He was served papers two days earlier.

Since her death by gunshot at Lumber River State Park in Robeson County, which authorities have deemed a suicide, News13 has reported multiple times about claims of abuse at the hands of John-Paul — including him placing GPS trackers on her vehicle, slashing her tires and posting explicit photos of her online.

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