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Footage Shows Army Veteran Chris Skinner Drowning Was an Accident and Police Close Their Case

By James Seidel | CC News Network | April 2025 Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story included a section comparing details in Alison Williams Miller’s May 2024 affidavit with a 2023 family trip to Bermuda. Because that material is now part of ongoing litigation and lacked full context, the section has been removed pending further review.

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — Recent online speculation surrounding the 2021 death of Army veteran Chris Skinner has reignited public interest in the case, but contrary to claims circulating on social media, no new evidence has been discovered.

The footage at the center of the renewed attention — surveillance video showing Skinner’s motorized wheelchair rolling into a community pool — is not new. It is the exact same video previously reviewed by the Myrtle Beach Police Department and the Horry County Coroner’s Office, both of which ruled the incident an accidental drowning.

Chris Skinner, 41, who was paralyzed from the neck down following a car crash at age 20, drowned on September 6, 2021, after his wheelchair entered the pool in the early morning hours. The video camera shows Skinner waiting for several seconds before the chair accelerates in a straight line a very short distance, with no visible attempt to slow or turn. The video shows his hand clearly on the joystick controller in an upright, slightly forward position.

With no one present to intervene, he remained strapped in and submerged. A police report notes Skinner is seen attempting to lift his head before the footage ends. His body was discovered roughly 40 minutes later.

Case Was Reopened — But Not Due to New Video

Horry County Chief Deputy Coroner Tamara Willard confirmed the case was reopened in 2024, citing “questions about the manner of death.” However, law enforcement sources and case files confirm that the footage referenced was already available and evaluated at the time of the original investigation.

“This is not newly uncovered evidence,” one law enforcement official told CC News. “The video has been in our possession since the incident. The circumstances surrounding its renewed public attention are unrelated to any new forensic or investigatory development.”

Bottom Line

There is no newly discovered evidence in Chris Skinner’s case. The CCTV footage currently circulating is the same material previously reviewed by authorities, who found no signs of foul play at the time. While the case has apparently been reopened for further review — a common step when public scrutiny arises — any claims suggesting the footage “proves” Skinner’s death was not accidental are premature and unsupported by the official record.

Coroner Reopens Case?

In March 2025, Horry County Chief Deputy Coroner Tamara Willard confirmed to CC News Network by phone recording that the case was being reviewed due to “new evidence regarding the manner of death.” While no official cause-of-death change has been announced, the investigation is allegedly focused on new information sent to her office.

That footage shows Skinner’s wheelchair rolling toward the pool, pausing, and then continuing forward. Whether this motion was mechanical malfunction, user error remains unclear.

What also remains unclear is Tamara Willard’s comments on what this case actually is. In a call to CC News Network, she stated it was not “reopened” but rather her department was reviewing new information sent to her office concerning this case. Then she came out in an email a week later saying, “Our case remains open at this time’. Which is it? We reached out for clarification via email and received no clarification.

Family Divided — Speculation vs. Suicide?

This is updated as of 5/2/25 for clarification purposes and to offer another opinion:

The Skinner family, through their attorney, says it asked the Horry County coroner to review the 2021 drowning because relatives want “truth and transparency” about Chris Skinner’s final moments. Myrtle Beach police closed the original investigation in 2022 after finding no evidence of foul play, and MBPD authorities have not indicated any plan to change the ruling.

Jane Doe #1 and #2 and Pastor John-Paul Miller

Miller is also facing multiple civil lawsuits involving serious allegations, including two from women who claim he and his father, Reginald Wayne Miller, engaged in sexual abuse and grooming within their church community, Solid Rock Ministries. Miller has denied all allegations and filed a counter-suit for defamation in one case.

However, what’s even more confusing is that one of the women suing the Miller and their church, is the granddaughter of the #2 in charge of the same church and was the #1 person in charge of the school where the alleged incident happened yet does not name any grandparent in her lawsuit.

Both Jane Doe #1 and Alison Miller came out with their stories in May 2024, just days and weeks after the suicide of Mica Miller.

The CC News Network has investigated the cases of Jane Doe #1 and Jane Doe #2 and have found many inconsistent statements made in their cases that don’t line up with the actual facts. Ironically the same can now be said about Alison Miller’s affidavit.

Final Word

As of this report, there is no official evidence suggesting foul play in Skinner’s death. The Myrtle Beach Police have officially closed the case, stating no foul play in Skinner’s death.

The Horry County Coroner’s Office has not announced a timeline for concluding the re-review of the same video in which they already declared as an accident.

Solid Rock Church was sold for $2+ million dollars. Multiple lawsuits against the church and John Paul Miller and his father are piling up.

Some of Skinner’s family still talk to social media personalities who have demanded this case be ruled a suicide.

CC News will continue to follow this developing story.