Rep. Max Miller has denied all wrongdoing and attempted to secure custody of the former couple’s 2-year-old daughter after she broke her collarbone earlier this year
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NEED TO KNOW
- Ohio Rep. Max Miller allegedly held a gun to his ex-wife’s head and threatened Sen. Bernie Moreno, his former father-in-law, according to court filings from former wife Emily Moreno, police reports and transcripts of Emily’s testimony
- The former Trump White House aide — who President Donald Trump has endorsed in his reelection campaign — has denied all wrongdoing and waged a years-long legal battle against his ex-wife
- “Daddy kill you,” their daughter allegedly said at one point, Emily told police in February; their daughter also allegedly said “Daddy’s house is scary,” according to the police report
Ohio Rep. Max Miller allegedly held a gun to his ex-wife’s head and threatened Sen. Bernie Moreno, his former father-in-law and a fellow Ohio Republican, according to court filings from former wife Emily Moreno, police reports and transcripts of Emily’s testimony.
The former Trump White House aide — who President Donald Trump endorsed in his reelection campaign — has denied all wrongdoing and waged a years-long legal battle against his ex-wife, including filing defamation lawsuits and attempting to secure custody of their 2-year-old daughter after she broke her collarbone earlier this year under unclear circumstances.
No criminal charges have been filed against Miller, 37, and an investigation by child protective services was unable to determine whether the toddler’s broken collarbone was a product of abuse, court documents and a Feb. 23 report from the Bay Village Police Department, both obtained by PEOPLE, show.
“Daddy kill you,” their daughter allegedly said at one point, Emily told police in February. Their daughter also allegedly said “Daddy’s house is scary,” according to the report.
A child protective services specialist who worked on the case said that bruising near the fracture discovered in February resembled a “handprint,” police noted in their report.
Neither Miller nor the child’s mother said they knew what caused the break, though Emily told police that Miller had thrown hot water at her, pointed a gun at her head and shoved her in the past, according to the report.
Emily, 32, further alleged Miller grabbed her on Feb. 1, “threw her against the wall” and left her with “an obvious grab mark on her upper arm and bruising to her stomach” while their daughter looked on.
Miller’s ex-wife also told police that the congressman had allegedly “held a gun to her head” and noted there was “another domestic violence incident” in March 2025, per the report.
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“I was changing the baby and I couldn’t do that with the lights off. So I had to turn… the light on and that made him upset,” Emily told police of the gun incident on Feb. 25, according to audio published by CNN in June. She alleged Miller yelled at her and then pointed a handgun at her head.
Miller told CNN in June that his ex-wife’s allegations were a “complete fabrication,” adding he doesn’t “have a weapon that’s easily accessible in my home like that.” He chalked up the legal dispute to “a very nasty divorce.”
A day after Emily spoke with police, Miller sat down with police for a recorded interview also obtained by CNN.
“She’s very manipulative and she has a history and she was diagnosed bipolar a long time ago,” Miller told police.
Emily’s attorneys have denied she has a bipolar diagnosis. In a court filing dated July 23, 2026, Miller said he has no documentation to back up his claim.
Chris Vlasto, a spokesperson for Miller whose firm Haven Strategies Inc. received $30,000 in May and June from the congressman’s campaign, referred PEOPLE to previous on-the-record comments by Miller and his representatives in media reports dating back months.
Vlasto — formerly a Emmy Award-winning executive producer of ABC’s Good Morning America — said Miller’s camp would not respond to questions about alleged threatening text messages Miller was accused of sending his former father-in-law, a close ally of the president.
“I’m sick of this, you know I never hurt our daughter. Take this however you want, everyone is going to get to know you better than your wife does,” Miller allegedly texted Bernie, according to Emily’s motion for a restraining order obtained by Mother Jones. “Enjoy the ride brother, I wouldn’t have to do this if you could keep your lying daughter under control.”
The senator’s office did not respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on Monday, July 27, but a spokesperson told The New York Times this week that “Senator Moreno’s top priority is the safety and well-being of his daughter and granddaughter.”
“While he will not litigate these matters in the media or respond to baseless public attacks, he will do whatever it takes to ensure a just outcome for his family,” the spokesperson told the paper.
Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty
The allegations of violence and threats to his ex-wife and an incumbent senator from his own state and party come as Republicans are trying to preserve their majorities in the House and the Senate for the final two years of Trump’s second term.
“Congressman Max Miller is a fantastic Champion for the Great People of Ohio’s 7th Congressional District!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on May 5, touting the congressman’s efforts “to fight tirelessly” for the president’s agenda, including “our always under siege Second Amendment.”
“Max Miller has my Complete and Total Endorsement — HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN!” the president added.
The congressman and his ex-wife were married at Trump’s New Jersey golf club in 2022.
Miller’s district voted for Trump by 11 percentage points in 2024, though the congressman only secured 51% of the vote.
“Take a hike. After I win by more than my district, don’t bother ever contacting me again,” Miller told a Times reporter. “You’re disgusting.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and the White House did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment on Wednesday, July 29.
“The key word there is allegation,” Johnson said at a press conference on July 21 when asked about Miller. “I’m not in the business of investigations as they’re in process and we’ll see how it shakes out.”
Miller has faced years of domestic abuse allegations, including from his ex-girlfriend and former Trump White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, who he is now entangled with in a separate legal battle.
Miller accused Grisham of defamation, and the former press secretary sued him this month for allegedly violating a legal settlement they reached in 2023, according to Spectrum News.
Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty
Miller has accused his ex-wife of attempting to frame him for abuse of her and their child. He fought for a civil protection order for himself and their child — alleging domestic abuse on his ex-wife’s part for months — until dropping the request for order on Tuesday, July 28, a source familiar with the court proceedings tells PEOPLE.
“My ex-wife is making allegations against me to not only abuse to our daughter, but she is making allegations against me as well,” Miller said on Feb. 27 during a court hearing in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, according to a transcript obtained by PEOPLE. “She’s not mentally well, your honor.”
“I want you to help me because I’m scared,” the congressman added.
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The request for the civil protection order wasn’t dropped until this week because the judge overseeing the case required Miller to say he was no longer fearful of his ex-wife, the source claims to PEOPLE. A rep for Miller confirms this point as accurate to PEOPLE.
“The facts speak for themselves: the court has continued to permit him joint custody of his child. If there were credible evidence supporting these outrageous accusations, that simply would not be the case. Congressman Miller will continue to vigorously defend his reputation against false and reckless allegations designed to inflame public opinion rather than reflect reality. This narrative has gone on long enough,” Miller’s campaign spokeswoman Abigail Angelos tells PEOPLE.
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In a motion filing dated July 23, Emily’s attorney wrote that she “has been forced to defend herself against a baseless Petition brought by the very man she fears—her accuser—compounding the harm already inflicted upon her, predicated on false statements made by” Miller.
A civil trial to settle their custody dispute is scheduled to begin on Nov. 5, two days after Election Day.
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