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Attorney Regina Ward Fires Back: Refutes Paralegal’s Claims Made by Melissa Mancari in the JP Miller Legal Battle

By James Seidel | CC News Network

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C., –– In an exclusive interview today with the CC News Network, Myrtle Beach attorney Regina Ward emphatically refuted the allegations made by Melissa Mancari. Ward stated, “I refute every single word she (Melissa Mancari) is saying.” “The conversation that Mancari references is completely false, and I have irrefutable evidence to prove it,” Ward said. “It’s false to the core.” Ward described Mancari as “desperate to be an important piece in this case” and accused her of attempting to insert herself into the ongoing legal battle involving pastor John Paul Miller. “She (Mancari) said the FBI called her asking for info but could never produce a phone number or show Ward proof of a call when I asked,” Ward added.

Regina Ward made her position loud and clear: “The truth is coming.” She also expressed concern that people working so hard to go after JP Miller may be distracting from the real message of getting a bill passed in Mica Miller’s name for coercive control through the South Carolina Legislature.

Regina Ward explained that she has repeatedly reached out to with the idea for a coercive control bill to her representative in the state Senate, Luke Rankin, who chairs the powerful judiciary committee, is married and has a daughter and a son. Despite Ward’s efforts, each of the four times she has proposed a coercive control bill to Rankin, it was never even sent to a committee for hearings for which Senator Rankin chairs. A bill like this has made it to the floor of the South Carolina General Assembly several times but never made it to Rankin’s Judiciary Committee.

Ward asserted that she’s has carefully documented her actions to protect herself against unfounded claims. This calculated and forthright approach lends tremendous credibility to Ward’s narrative, as she remains committed to her role as an attorney and to her longstanding mission to bring about positive legal change in Mica Miller’s name.

We have reached out to Mancari for any hard evidence to back up her statements, we have not heard back.

What is Coercive Control?

Coercive control refers to a pattern of behavior that seeks to isolate, intimidate, or manipulate a person, often in a domestic context. This form of abuse may not involve physical violence, but it can include emotional abuse, surveillance, threats, financial control, and isolation from family or friends. Coercive control laws aim to provide legal protection for victims who are trapped in such manipulative and abusive relationships. Many have alleged that John Paul Miller may have displayed this behavior towards his deceased wife, Mica Miller, who according to the Robeson County Sheriff and Medical Examiner, that Mica committed suicide. Others that support justice for Mica contend that the medical examiner’s report and the investigation were filled with mistakes, but no other official word from any law enforcement has made such claims.

Coercive Control Legislation in Other States

Several states across the United States have recognized coercive control as a serious issue and have enacted legislation to address it:

Texas: In 2019, Texas passed a law expanding the definition of family violence to include coercive control. This law provides more legal avenues for victims experiencing controlling behavior and non-physical abuse in domestic relationships.
Utah: Utah has recognized coercive control as a form of abuse under its domestic violence statutes, allowing victims to seek protective orders based on patterns of psychological or controlling behavior.
Tennessee: Although Tennessee has not explicitly passed a standalone coercive control law, it has expanded domestic violence statutes to include controlling behavior as a factor in determining protective orders.
Hawaii: In 2021, Hawaii enacted a law that criminalizes coercive control as part of its domestic violence statutes.

These laws aim to protect individuals who may not be experiencing physical harm but are still subjected to controlling and abusive behaviors. The absence of such legislation in South Carolina leaves many victims vulnerable and without the necessary legal recourse. Why doesn’t South Carolina lawmakers want to protect its citizens from coercive control?

Mancari’s Allegations Appear Increasingly Unreliable

Newly surfaced emails sent to the Myrtle Beach Magistrate Court and inconsistent statements raise serious questions about the credibility of Melissa Mancari, the former Myrtle Beach paralegal at the current center of John Paul Miller’s ongoing legal battles. Mancari has publicly accused Miller of witness tampering and harassment in her packet sent to the Myrtle Beach Magistrate Court, but emails show the opposite, that Mancari actively and voluntarily engaged with him through numerous messages, contradicting her claims of “unwanted communication.”

Even more alarming, her police report to the Myrtle Beach Police Department—alleging Miller sent her an unwanted message asking her to provide false testimony—now appears to be false under South Carolina law (§ 16-17-722), which criminalizes knowingly filing false reports with law enforcement. CC News Network reached out to Mancari for evidence supporting her claims but has not received a response.

However, Regina Ward’s statements about Mancari’s packet she sent in about Miller also refute what podcasters and other social media accounts stated numerous times about Mancari’s allegations. Listen HERE to what Melissa Mancari alleges against Regina Ward, all of which Ward refutes as untrue.

Furthering to muddy the waters, one podcaster wrote this about Melissa Mancari’s packet on JP Miller that she sent to the Myrtle Beach Magistrate’s Court last week:

BREAKING NEWS IN MYRTLE BEACH CASE:
Text messages sent from JP Miller and TikTok user TrueCrimeRI to Melissa Mancari, the former paralegal JP filed a $6M defamation complaint against…

The messages seem to show TrueCrimeRI and JP trying to CONVINCE Melissa to testify AGAINST the protesters, offering to drop the $6M case against her if she did. Melissa—who did NOT witness any of the interactions JP says he had with the protesters—turned the texts/emails over to the Judge. THIS IS DISTURBING STUFF! And seems to suggest that JP doesn’t have any actual witnesses to what he claims the protesters “did to him.” It’s also VERY TELLING of how this man operates. MORE TO COME.

This is purportedly text messages between JP and TrueCrimeRI, who allegedly approached Melissa to offer her a deal: If she testifies against the protesters, JP will drop his case against her. Melissa never witnessed any bad behavior from protesters, which JP and RI allegedly knew…

The deeper this case is examined, the more it appears that JP Miller could be a target —not of witness tampering accusations, but of a calculated attempt to destroy his reputation. From my visit to Myrtle Beach last week to investigate this case, I have seen a lot of hate. Protesters in the name of Mica Miller, attacking church goers. Some associated with the Justice for Mica movement seem believe anything certain social media people put out there as “fact,” as long as it makes JP Miller look bad, and make his church followers stop going to him.

Attorney Regina Ward’s assessment of Melissa Mancari’s stories and her seemingly unfounded statements against Ward suggests that Mancari’s actions are simply a way to “insert herself” into the JP Miller cases. Referring only to the packet of documents sent to the court, “It doesn’t look like he (Miller) committed any crimes to me, Ward stated about the Miller documents to the court” Adding further weight to Miller’s defense, a source at the Magistrate’s Court stated that Judge Arakas reportedly went so far as to say, “Miller has done nothing wrong.”

We’ll wait and see how this plays out online, but it is hard to argue against facts and statements made by attorneys and judges, involved and overseeing the many lawsuits that Miller has filed against so called protestors. Stay tuned.

@crimeandcask EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW ALERT Crime and Cask sits down with Regina Ward for an in depth conversation and her firing back at Melissa Mancari’s allegations against her. ️ Get ready for jaw-dropping revelations and behind-the-scenes details you won’t find anywhere else! ️‍♂️ Read the story now and uncover the truth! #CrimeAndCask #TrueCrime #ReginaWard #LowcountrySecrets #ExclusiveInterview #CrimeNews #jpmiller #johnpaulmiller #myrtlebeach #sc #fyp #micamiller ♬ original sound – Crime and Cask

Has Mancari Weaponized the Justice System?

The pattern of alleged false accusations, misleading police reports, and shifting narratives suggests a larger agenda at play by Mancari.

1️⃣ It’s alleged that she knowingly misrepresented her communication with Miller in her police report.
2️⃣ Did she try to set up Regina Ward to gather intel against Miller under the guise of “helping the FBI?”
3️⃣ Mancari contradicted her own claims by repeatedly emailing Miller, proving there was no harassment or “unwanted” contact.

4️⃣ Now attorney Regina Ward has come out saying she refutes everything Mancari is saying. Those are strong words by an attorney, and Mancari could be exposed to a civil lawsuit

If Ward believes she has been harmed by false statements from Mancari, accusing her of acting illegally or unethically, Ward could potentially pursue various legal claims to protect her reputation if she so desired. One of her primary claims could be defamation, which encompasses libel for written or published false statements and slander for spoken false statements. To succeed, Ward must prove that the statements were false, communicated to others, caused harm to their reputation, and were made negligently or with actual malice. In some cases, a claim for defamation per se may apply, as certain statements—such as those implying a person committed a crime or acted unethically in their profession—are inherently damaging, eliminating the need to prove actual harm.

If the false statements resulted in lost clients, business opportunities, or harm to her practice, she could also sue for tortious interference with business relations. Additionally, if the statements portrayed Ward in a misleading or highly offensive manner, she might pursue a false light invasion of privacy claim. In extreme cases where the false statements were outrageous and caused severe emotional distress, Ward could file a claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED). Furthermore, if the false claims led to unjust legal action against Ward, she might seek recourse through claims of malicious prosecution or abuse of process, especially if the legal process was misused for an improper purpose. These legal actions are taken seriously, particularly when false statements impact an attorney’s professional reputation and livelihood. Mancari may want to lawyer up if Ward and Miller decide that this warrants Mancari to account for her alleged actions.

With such glaring contradictions, the question now becomes: Was Mancari’s goal to legally damage Miller and Ward, rather than truly seek justice? As with any accusation of defamation or lander and libel, the truth is always the best defense.

Emails Contradict Witness Tampering Allegations

At the core of Mancari’s allegations is the claim that Miller pressured her to provide false testimony. However, email exchanges paint a completely different picture:

“If you seriously show up and testify to all the horrible things you’ve seen… I seriously will bless you somehow. And I’ll make sure you sound balanced and truthful,” Miller wrote. Nowhere in the emails does Miller request false testimony and nowhere in any email this news outlet has seen has Miller said he would pay Mancari. Instead, Miller encourages honesty, making Mancari’s police report factually inaccurate.

Yet, Mancari proceeded to file a formal complaint against Miller, claiming she received unwanted messages pressuring her to commit perjury—a claim contradicted by her own digital correspondence.

Regina Ward - Melissa Mancari — Melissa Mancari emailing John Paul Miller on Feb 7, 2025, yet she alleges that Miller was sending her unsolicited emails, etc.

Possible Legal Consequences for Mancari if She Filed False Police Reports

Under South Carolina law, knowingly filing a false police report is a criminal offense punishable by fines and possible jail time. This raises serious questions: Did Mancari knowingly attempt to weaponize law enforcement against Miller?

If the Myrtle Beach Police Department determines that Mancari’s police report was knowingly false, she could face criminal penalties herself.

Defamation and Malicious Prosecution Claims

With evidence emerging that Mancari willingly communicated with Miller, the legal ground for defamation and malicious prosecution lawsuits against her grows stronger.

Miller has suffered significant reputational harm from Mancari’s public accusations, including her statements on YouTube, TikTok, and social media claiming he manipulated her and engaged in criminal behavior. Which is probably why he filed a $6,000,000 defamation lawsuit against her last fall.

Legal experts argue that Miller could file a defamation suit under South Carolina’s defamation per se laws, given that false accusations of a crime are inherently defamatory. If proven, damages would be presumed, meaning Mancari could face severe financial consequences. Double that if Regina Ward were to sue her.

Conclusion: A Manufactured Scandal?

The deeper this case is examined, the more it appears that JP Miller and Regina Ward are being unfairly targeted—not for witness tampering, but as part of a calculated attempt to destroy their reputations, the question remains, why?

With many contradictory statements, possible perjury, and false police reports, Mancari’s claims appear increasingly unreliable—raising the question: Was this all an orchestrated effort to take Miller and Ward down?

We’ll find out more as numerous lawsuits filed by Miller against protestors will be heard this week on February 26th, 2025, starting at 8 AM inside the Myrtle Beach Magistrate Court. The CC News Network will be there to cover it all and let you know what comes of all of them. Will Melissa Mancari show up to testify? What evidence will JP Miller present in these court hearings? What defense will attorney Regina Ward put up for her clients being sued by Miller? Wednesday can’t come soon enough for all of us to find out together.

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James Seidel, an investigative journalist at CC News Network, continues to cover this developing story, committed to presenting the facts as they are, not as they appear to be. Any conclusions drawn are entirely your own.