Over the past six months, the name Mica Francis Miller has come to evoke powerful sentiments. Her death this spring sparked a movement - one aimed at securing justice for her buy also criminalizing the stalking and harassment many believe contributed to her suspicious and untimely demise. Every Sunday since, protesters have gathered outside Solid Rock Church in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina raising the cry "Justice for Mica".

To recap: As first reported by our media outlet, Mica's body was found with a gunshot wound to the head at 4:23 p.m. EST on April 27, 2024 at North Carolina's Lumber River State Park - a sprawling 14,000-acre wilderness straddling this scenic blackwater river. Mica traveled to this remote location from Myrtle Beach earlier that day, and her body was discovered by police in a swampy area approximately forty meters away from where spent shell casings and her belongings were recovered.

Mica's death was officially ruled a suicide by North Carolina investigators and medical examiners, but the bizarre manner in which her husband John Paul Miller announced her passing - and subsequent allegations of harassment and abuse against him leveled in multiple court filings - have raised doubts and put him squarely in the public's crosshairs.

Miller is the pastor at Solid Rock. Mica was a missionary and worship leader with the congregation.

This week, one of the protesters - who is also a mental health professional and church leader - joined research director Jenn Wood and I for a discussion about coercive control and organized harassment as well as the ongoing challenges faced by protesters.

As an advocate for change and a proponent of the "Justice for Mica" movement, Rev Millie Joy is a positive voice on TikTok, providing education about mental well-being and spreading words of encouragement. She is a survivor, mother of six, and the wife of Rad Rev Rob. Together the couple leads Church14 in Myrtle Beach.

Joy defined coercive control and explained why it can be difficult to detect.

"It's like a systematic pattern of behavior that includes intimidation, isolation, terror inducing violence or threats of violence," Joy said. "But this, it's very hard to detect because it uses a lot of strategy, a lot of logistical components, a lot of financial things that can't really be seen when assessing a relationship from the outside. You know, it can look like a very normal relationship when you're just taking a look in, until the people start to realize what they're involved in."

She described coercive control and organized harassment (or group stalking) as siamese twins. She said Mica was the victim of organized harassment - and now protesters are being targeted.

"We are seeing it against protesters," Joy said. "We're seeing it against anyone who stands against the narrative or who believes something other than what some people want them to believe. And it's beyond - it's very much an invasion. It's an invasion of boundaries. It's an invasion of personal space. But it's just enough to make you think that you're going crazy - and it's very hard to prove."

This week another content creator covering Mica's story took to social media with some insights about the audience for Mica's story - and the protesters.

Anne of Createur de Classe Magazine said most of the audience following Mica's story and most of the protesters are also victims of intimate partner violence or domestic abuse who suffer from post traumatic stress disorder as well as other physical and mental health problems. She said the protesters are fighting not only for Mica, but also for themselves. She called out those whose infighting, drama, and divisive antics are distracting from the mission.

"I'm hoping the people that are listening that are part of the problem wake up and realize why this is such a highly emotionally charged case," Anne said. "Because the majority of the people watching and a majority of the people in that protest are victims themselves, and they go through these symptoms as they're fighting, as they stand and fight. This is the symptomatology that they suffer with. And if you bring them more chaos, more trauma that affects their symptomatology, then shame on you."

Joy said the protesters are also up against constantly changing rules that are not evenly applied by officers from the Myrtle Beach Police Department (MBPD). She expressed gratitude for everyone who is still pushing for justice.

"I'm just so thankful for those that have not given up on the story and for the life that Mica did lead, because there's no good outcome to how we lost Mica," Joy said. "You know either way is absolutely tragic, but there are more Mica's out there, and we need to see things change - and Mica should have had better."

Callie Lyons is a journalist, researcher and author. Her 2007 book 'Stain-Resistant, Nonstick, Waterproof and Lethal' was the first to cover forever chemicals and their impact on communities - a story later told in the movie 'Dark Waters.' Her investigative work has been featured in media outlets, publications, and documentaries all over the world. Lyons also appears in 'Citizen Sleuth' - a 2023 documentary exploring the genre of true crime.