US Rep. Max Miller sues his ex-wife for defamation in escalation of long-running divorce feud
COLUMBUS, Ohio– The bitter divorce between an Ohio congressman and his estranged wife, the daughter of one of the state’s U.S. senators, has escalated into a new lawsuit.
Republican U.S. Rep. Max Miller filed a defamation suit against Emily Moreno, his former wife, Wednesday in Cleveland, citing “the considerable harm to his reputation and finances” caused to him by her accusations that he was “a violent and abusive husband and father.”
Miller, a two-term congressman who is up for re-election this fall, alleges that Moreno, his attorney Andrew Zashin and his law firm engaged in a defamatory campaign against him by knowingly disseminating false information about him to media outlets including the Daily Mail, a British tabloid and the New York Post. The suit contends that the resulting damage to his reputation jeopardizes his chances of re-election.
These outlets have “a circulation measured in tens of millions of print and online readers,” the complaint states, and their articles have been read, viewed or discussed by Miller’s constituents, his congressional colleagues, “his political supporters and donors, the media and the general public.”
The suit seeks compensatory damages in excess of $25,000, punitive damages sufficient to deter future similar conduct, and attorneys’ fees.
“Congressman Miller seeks to hold those responsible accountable and recover damages for the significant personal, professional and political harm he suffered,” his spokesperson said in a statement.
Zashin declined to comment.
The incident is reminiscent of a similar situation that occurred when Miller, a White House aide to President Donald Trump during the Republican’s first term, first ran for Congress in 2021.
Miller’s former girlfriend, Stephanie Grisham, a former White House press secretary, raised allegations in her book and in a Washington Post op-ed at the time that a former White House staffer, later identified as Miller, had physically assaulted her while they were dating. Miller responded by filing a defamation suit against her. He voluntarily dismissed the suit with prejudice in August 2023, just before the case went to trial.
Moreno spokesman Stefan Mychajliw cited the earlier lawsuit in a statement Thursday.
“Mr. Miller is upset because he tried to silence Emily Moreno the same way he silenced Stephanie Grisham — and Emily won’t let him,” he said, suggesting Miller is “performing the same scenario on a woman with photographs of her bruises and burns.” He added: “Mr. Miller will not silence Ms. Moreno. »
Miller married Emily Moreno in 2022. They had a daughter in 2023.
He filed for divorce in August 2024, while his father, Bernie, was successfully running for U.S. Senate, supported by Trump. The abuse allegations — most recently, Moreno said Miller threw boiling water on him, an allegation he denies — come amid a complicated custody battle in which Miller sought a restraining order against his ex-wife and subpoenaed the senator to testify. The divorce was finalized last June.
Miller’s spokesperson provided documents that said several allegations that he abused his daughter were investigated by the Cuyahoga County Division of Children and Family Services and found to be unsubstantiated.
Amid the drama, Democrat Brian Poindexter, a five-term local councilman and union ironworker, is seeking to oust Miller and flip Ohio’s 7th Congressional District in November.
