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CHAPTER 21

On August 5,1997, my nephew Peter went over the edge and had to be admitted to the State Hospital in Massillon, Ohio. On August 4th, Ervin had a long talk with me about his concern for his brother Peter. Peter had made statements in the past, saying that he was afraid justice would never be done, that his parents would be put back in the house and life would go on as usual, and that more of his family members would be going to their grave like his sisters Christine and Brenda did. He said that since no one else would stop his parents and Bishop Jacob Miller, he'd have to do it himself.

But Peter started talking crazy. He said he needed to castrate his Dad and hang him, and also castrate Bishop Jacob Miller and his preachers. Peter felt like it was left up to him to protect his brothers and sisters who live in New York. He asked his wife to make sure his Sunday clothes were nice and clean, that he might need them.

When my nephew Ervin told me that, my first response was, "Oh Boy."

I said, "Ervin, listen very carefully. You've got to make arrangements to get Peter some professional help, or admit him to a Mental Hospital and keep him there until he's better. Those statements are similar to statements other Amish have made before they committed suicide." Peter has already mentioned about taking his life, and I didn't know whether Ervin and I would be able to stop him. Ervin said Peter appeared to be frustrated all day but by that evening he was happy.

I said, "Ervin, that's our sign that he's figured a way out. You got to get him help A.S.A.P."

"Uncle David, I don't think he'll do anything tonight," Ervin replied.

However, Monday night Peter wouldn't sleep at all. All he wanted to do was have sex with his wife, who is 45 days away from giving birth to their second child. She said she was tired and hurt and Peter wouldn't have an orgasm.

At 4:30 that morning Peter's wife Edna called Ervin and told him she was afraid. Ervin tried to calm her down and told her he'd deal with Peter after Peter got off work. At 5:30 that morning, Peter called Ervin. Peter wanted to know if he should go to work, because he hadn't slept all night. Ervin tried to page me, but I was out of the area and couldn't be reached by pager. Later on, Ervin called my house and left a message that he needed my help. At 10:00 a.m. Ervin got a call from the sawmill where Peter worked. It took till about 11:00 a.m. before Ervin could get a driver to go and rescue Peter.

Peter's job was to carry the slab off as the logs were being sawed, and run the slab through a chipper. This chipper is full of knives. That morning at 9:00 a.m. Peter gave one of the boys where he worked at a $20.00 bill and told him to go get him a pack of cigarettes. This boy, being from the higher classed Amish, had a car. Peter also told him to keep the change. It took Peter only one and a half hours to smoke a pack of cigarettes. The other employees stated that it was like Peter was trying to get caught, to be pulled in that chipper.

When Ervin finally arrived at the sawmill and his brother Peter spotted him , Peter ran to the barn to hide. Ervin started to run after his brother, but decided to walk instead. Ervin figured it would just make matters worse if he chased after Peter. It didn't take Ervin long to find his brother in the barn. Peter was hiding in a box stall and Ervin went in, took Peter by the arm, and led him to the van.

Peter never asked his brother where they were going. He smiled and didn't say much. But when he did speak, he didn't make any sense. Ervin took his brother to New Phila Emergency room. They briefly checked him out in the emergency room and decided to send him to Massillon State Hospital in an emergency vehicle with Ervin by his side. As they checked Peter in, he changed personalities in a matter of seconds.

The Massillon City Police were called, and three of them arrived in minutes. It took three police officers, two paramedics and Ervin to bring Peter under control. They did finally get Peter hand cuffed, and he stayed that way until he was admitted and sedated.

Ervin had a lot of questions for me. "Should I sell some of Peter's shop tools to help pay for the bills? Should I rent him a home closer to my home , so I can take care of him? Or should I move him in with me?" Ervin's questions went on and on. I listened to him, carefully evaluating each and every one of his concerns.

I said, "Ervin it wouldn't be wise to make a hasty decision at this point." I also wanted to see what the kick back would be from the Amish point of view. I was afraid of, that the Amish would get together, and Peter would lose his job and probably his home. And the same thing could to happen to Ervin. I expected Ervin and Peter to both be excommunicated and shunned. Before I hung up the phone, I told Ervin to make sure that Edna got her tubes tied after she gives birth to that child. That was her wish and her right as a human being.

Ervin said, "Thank-you again, Uncle David. I don't know what we would have done without you since our parents were arrested. If it wasn't for you, my brothers and sisters and I would have fallen flat on our faces."

"Ervin, I'm nobody special. I just happen to be somebody who cares," I said, and we hung up.

That evening Michelle tried desperately to get a hold of me, and all she could get was the answering machine. Sometimes I felt so tired I just wanted to quit the whole case. But then I think of Malinda and Catherine, and remember how they asked us to be their parents and take them away, so their mother and father couldn't beat them anymore. And I go on.

On August 6,1997, I talked to Michelle. I could tell that she was frustrated with the system, and wanted to know why they weren't allowed to have an attorney. Michelle said that no one was talking about moving them to Ohio anymore. What about her brother James?

Michelle said, "Uncle David, do you think he's going to stand by and help or is he going to quit, too?" I let her talk and let her get it all off her chest. I told her not to worry, that we had an appointment to meet with Bryan Haynes at 20/20 in New York City on 8-12. Fran also talked to Michelle as she was having problems with her menstrual cycle, and told her to hang in there and call us again when she needed to.

On August 7,1997, we were trucking and trying to make arrangements to go home. We arrived in Memphis, TN. early Thursday morning. From there we took a load into Austin, Texas, from Austin we went to San Antonio, from there back to Austin, and from Austin to Dallas. Ervin paged me, then called my home number, but he said it wasn't an emergency, so I figured he'd wait. That evening we got a load going to Cincinnati, Ohio. We arrived in Cincinnati at 2:00 p.m. the next day. We stopped at a store and bought our first computer.

Ervin called again, so I called our daughters and told them that if Ervin called, to tell him I'd be home and we'd have all day Saturday to talk. The girls didn't know we were buying a computer, which was something they've always wanted. When we arrived home that evening around 10:00 p.m., we tricked them into helping us unload the car.

When they discovered that we had a computer, they were ecstatic. Fran was tired and went to bed around midnight. We got the computer hooked up, and the girls took turns playing with it. They were up all night. I'd never seen anything like it. They were constantly saying, oh Mom and Dad thank-you for getting us the computer. This is what parents are supposed to do, go out of their way for their children.

I was exhausted but I knew I had to go see Ervin. I turned the hot water on in the tub and filled it up with water. I must have soaked at least 45 minutes trying to loosen up my old bones. With that and a hot cup of coffee. I dressed up in my biker gear, and went out in the garage and fired up my Harley. I knew I had about an hour's drive ahead of me to get to Ervin's.

Fran stayed home to make six copies of everything we had on the Andy Miller Case. I had a hard time staying awake on my motorcycle. I knew what I had to do: I had to focus in on little Malinda and Catherine who were looking to me for help. Thinking about them, about all the injustices they'd suffered in their young lives, was enough to keep me awake. I arrived at Ervin's place at about 9:30 a.m.

Ervin was quick to talk about this whole situation about Peter being in the State Hospital. Now Ervin was taking care of Peter's wife and child at his house. What if his brothers and sisters from New York got the okay to come to his house and stay?

I said, "Ervin, the only answer I have at this point is to take one day at a time. Something will make itself known concerning Peter's instability. I'll see to that." From there the conversation went to his brother James.

James was supposed to get the help of higher classed Amish to get a house for his brothers and sister from New York. Like another time when the higher classed Amish were supposed to help, once they talked to the Swartzentruber Amish they backed out.

There is no Amish man alive who wants to see these children removed from their parents, because each and everyone of them is afraid of how the public will see it. They have mentioned their school system. They're afraid of counselors being put in each school, and afraid that this could happen to them, as the biggest percentage of the Amish are guilty of rigid control.

Ervin's brother James had himself been severely beaten in 1995 with chains, sticks and straps, and was lucky just to walk. Ervin couldn't understand how James wouldn't stand up for his brothers and sisters from New York, especially little Malinda and Catherine. But all the same, he refused to help. He came up with a lame excuse, telling Ervin it was because of me, that the Amish didn't like me involved in this case. Of course they wouldn't. Ervin was frustrated that James refused to help his brothers and sisters.

I said, "Ervin try not to be upset at with James. He's been abused, too. Mentally this might be the best James can do."

Of course, this wasn't the only problem Ervin had. The evening of August 7,19 97 the preachers were there, and they tried their best to get Ervin motivated to get the case out of the court system. The preachers were Enos Yoder and Atlee Troyer. They also told Ervin that I was excommunicated and considered a condemned man, and it wouldn't be good for Ervin to work with me. That nothing good could come out of this to be working with a condemned man. They also mentioned that they're afraid of lawsuits from me, or other legal action that might be taken.

Ervin said, "Uncle David, I honestly believe if it wasn't for you, I would already have been excommunicated, shunned and made an example of."

"Thanks," I said. "But I can only hold the Amish back for so long. The way I see it, they're patiently waiting for the 27th, 28th, and 29th of August when the case will be heard in family court. If you children lose this case in court, they'll take this as a good sign. You'll be excommunicated so fast it'll make your head spin."

Lately, Ed Hyde had made the statement to Ervin Miller over the phone, that I had already destroyed these good Amish people's names by bringing the TV cameras in. That wasn't even the issue in this case. I have better things to do. I bear no ill will or hatred on anyone.

I ate lunch at Ervin's home that Saturday, spaghetti, pork and beans and coleslaw. It was about 4:00 p.m. that afternoon when I finally left. When I arrived at home, I had to help Fran with the paper work on the case. After supper I sat back and watched TV. Fran and I had a couple of Bud Lights.

On August 10,1997, we slept until about 7:00 a.m. We all got up, ate breakfast and got dressed, then went to Salt Fork State Park and made a video of me making a speech, a cry for help for our nieces and nephews. We also took a couple shots of the local Amish schools.

This video along with our journal and everything we have on the case will be sent to the Committee of Education and Labor Force in Washington, D.C., who also regulates Social Services through out the United States. We also sent a copy of this to Sub Capital Crime Committee, and to the President.

We got back home around 1:00 p.m. Fran cooked us a big meal, mashed potatoes, meat balls, corn on the cob, salad and applesauce, an old fashioned Amish meal. The girls both took turns playing with the computer. Fran and I sat on the couch and watched television, something we very rarely did anymore. We even canceled our vacation because of our nieces and nephews. We would love to take our family and go to the beach, go swimming and have cookouts. I really miss that. But the Miller children take a lot of my time. We packed our bags to make the trip to New York City. Debra and Becky asked if they could go along, as they wanted to meet Bryan Haynes and see Arlene and Larry from 20/20 again.
We're all hoping that Bryan Haynes is the special person who can save these Miller children from further abuse. We went to bed early Monday morning.

On August 11, we got up at about 8:00 a.m. After breakfast we were putting together the final packages we were about to ship out, when we received a phone call from Jason and Enna Storm who had very close ties with a well-known attorney Bryan Haynes. He stated that he just got off the phone with Bryan Haynes's secretary, and that Bryan was in court and she couldn't say for sure if he'd make it to the meeting on Tuesday morning.

By 1:30 p.m. we made the phone call to Bryan Haynes's office and spoke to Lisa and received the good news that the meeting was on with Bryan Haynes at ABC 20/20 Headquarters on Tuesday in New York City. By 2:00 p.m. we were all loaded up and ready to go to New York City, 485 miles. The girls were glad to go along. We arrived in Patterson, New Jersey, which is right across the river from New York City, at 11:45 p.m. We rented a room at the Holiday Inn, we watched TV for a while and then everybody went to bed.

I had a hard time getting to sleep, I was afraid Bryan Haynes wasn't up to the challenge that lay ahead of us. I finally managed to doze off, but it didn't last long. I was glad when morning came and it was time to get up. We got up at about 6:30, at 7:45 we were down stairs eating breakfast, and by 8:30 we were on our way to ABC 20/20 Headquarters.

We checked into ABC Headquarters and the Security Officers there wanted to know what our business was and who we wanted to see. After we'd signed in, the officer called Larry from 20/20 and verified our appointment. He gave each of us a visitor's pass, directed us to the elevator, and told us to go to the ninth floor. As we stepped off the elevator, Larry Gifford greeted us with a big smile. We went to his office immediately, joked around briefly; I told Larry we tied our horse and buggy up down in one of the side streets, and to make sure it got some hay and water.

Larry was filled with curiosity. He wanted to know just who was this Bryan Haynes, and just what were my intentions . "As far as who Bryan Haynes is, I honestly don't know," I said. "The way I understand it he's some top notch attorney who's very knowledgeable on the Right to Privacy, Freedom of Religion, and the Civil Rights Act."

Larry asked, "David, how did you find somebody like that?"

"That's just it Larry, I didn't. He found me."

Just then Arlene arrived. She had a big smile on her face and greeted us all with a big hug and kiss. She was quick to tell us that Bryan Haynes was right on her heels. My heart started racing. I was afraid I might act the wrong way, or say the wrong thing, and he wouldn't take the case. In my mind I had Bryan Haynes pictured to be a man of about 5 foot 11 or 6-foot one and having a ponytail and wearing glasses. Boy was I ever wrong. He was close to 5 foot 8 and weighing in at about 140 to 150 lbs.

There was something special about him. He looked very professional in his tailor made suit. When he shook my hand, he looked me directly in my eyes and had a good handshake. After just two minutes of talking to him, I knew there was no way I could afford his fee. This man was brilliant. We were quickly all seated again, and Larry went to get some coffee.

Bryan Haynes asked how far I went in school. I told him I was a seventh grade Amish drop out with a low education. I said, "I know it's not very impressive, but eighth grade is as high as I could have gone."

"You've got a better education than most attorneys I'm acquainted with," Bryan said, smiling. Arlene Wallace and Bryan Haynes quickly got to the legal aspects of the case. Bryan Haynes soon reminded me of a computer. No matter what kind of question I threw at him in a matter of seconds he had a detailed answer. He agreed on the Civil Rights aspect on this case, and also stated that he'd love to be the one to buy Bishop Jacob Miller his first television set.

"Furthermore," Bryan said, “I'm not so sure that anyone who was involved in this case had these children's best interest in mind. We might have to move the trial to Albany, N.Y. due to everyone's close ties to the Amish Community." We also went into great detail of the Amish's rigid control, how they were even shunning little Malinda. From there we talked about Fred Bundy, and almost all other aspects of the case. Arlene Wallace said that 20/20 wanted to be involved as we challenged the Amish system and fought for the custody of the Miller children and to get them out of New York.

We made arrangements to meet again on the 3rd and 4th of September. Bryan Haynes told us he could get a charter flight, to take all of us from Albany, N.Y. to a small air strip in Potsdam, N.Y.

"There will only be enough room on the plane for four of us." he said.

This created a problem because Arlene needed her Co-producer and a two TV camera crew.

Volunteering, I said, "I'll drive since we live in Ohio and it won't be that much further to drive up to Heuvelton. We're truck drivers, and are used to that kind of driving."

Arlene said, "I don't think 20/20 executives will spend that much for a plane ride."
But they agreed to work out the details at a later date.

"20/20 wants to do the shoot on September 3rd and 4th and air it in January," Arlene replied.

Just then Larry, co-producer for 20/20, walked back to the meeting, having missed almost everything. He had received an important phone call on another case he was working on. Arlene Wallace appeared to be very excited and wanted a copy of my journal.

"I thank everyone for your time on behalf of my nieces and nephews," I said, and started to walk off to go get the journal for Arlene.

Bryan Haynes said, "Hold up David, I want to walk down with you." He shook everyone's hand and told them good-bye. He was especially kind and considerate to Debra and Becky, thanking them for their help on the phone in the past.

As Bryan and I got in the elevator, he said, "We don't even need 20/20. They're not going to air until January, and that could be too late. We need coverage, but we need it now. My secretary is very good at that; she'll set it up for us. We've got to have a press conference concerning this case."

We were talking all the way down in the elevator, and Bryan said, "David Yoder you no longer stand alone. I'll let you do all the televised speeches. I'll just be there to support you and answer questions you're not qualified to answer. Lets stand up together and show these sons-of-bitches that they can't get away with these kind of tactics."

The elevator doors opened and we walked to the front door facing the street at ABC Headquarters. He shook my hand good-bye with authority, saying, "Stay in touch." It was somewhere close to noon. Larry was waiting to catch a plane to Chicago, and Arlene was going on an interview somewhere in New York City, so they were rushed for time. We said our good byes hurriedly. We had a long drive ahead of us for that afternoon. Larry walked us to the lobby door exit. He still had the same curious look in his eyes, as he did when I first spoke to him. I could tell he wanted to know exactly what I was up to. In a sense, he was right. I was withholding information, and I still am.

That afternoon on the way home we called Sack Younger's wife in upstate New York and told her we needed to talk to Michelle and that we'd call back at 6:00 p.m. sharp to talk to Michelle. At 6:00 p.m. we called Michelle at Sack Younger's house. Michelle seemed relieved that they were finally getting an attorney.