Judge Finds Millersburg Mother Not Guilty by Insanity in Atwood Lake Drowning

Judge Michael Ernest found Ruth R. Miller, 40, of the Millersburg area not guilty by reason of insanity for the drowning death of her 4-year-old son, identified in court filings as Vincen, ruling the legal evidence showed she lacked appreciation for the wrongfulness of her conduct. The verdict applied to all seven counts against Miller, which included murder, felonious assault, child endangerment and domestic violence charges, and followed Miller’s decision to waive a jury and proceed to a bench trial.

Ernest delivered the bench ruling in Tuscarawas County Common Pleas Court in New Philadelphia and stated plainly, “Ruth Miller is not guilty by reason of insanity.” The judge reviewed five exhibits during the trial, three of which were psychiatric evaluations; Ernest later told the court, “That’s the only conclusion that can be reached in this case based upon the evidence that has been presented to me.” Defense counsel Friedman emphasized the unanimity of the evaluations: “It was unanimous; there were no experts that opined differently.”

Prosecutors acknowledged the factual acts were not seriously disputed but said the medical findings controlled the legal outcome. Tuscarawas County Assistant Prosecutor Fred Scott told the court, “There was really no question that Ms. Miller conducted, did the acts with which she’s accused. The question was her mental state at the time of the offense. When you have a unanimous decision that the defendant did not understand the wrongfulness of her conduct, was in a psychotic state, the decision kind of writes itself.” Court testimony and exhibits indicated three separate psychiatric or forensic evaluators concluded Miller suffered a severe mental illness at the time of the August 23, 2025 drowning.

The court record and witness accounts laid out the sequence at Atwood Lake on August 23, 2025: around 10:30 a.m. Miller was driving erratically in a golf cart with three teenage children and then sped into the water after the cart flipped off the edge of a stone wall; the three teens escaped and witnesses helped Miller from the water. A witness identified as Campbell told investigators that after they exited the water Miller made the teens lie on a dock with their hands in the water and pray for Vincent and their father, and that the group was later seen huddled near the kayak launch, emotional and praying together.

Miller remains in custody at the Tuscarawas County jail and will stay there pending a hearing set for March 13 to determine her placement and next steps. Video and courtroom photos from the verdict were shown publicly, and observers noted Miller remained expressionless as the ruling was read. The March 13 hearing will set whether Miller is transferred for treatment, committed, or otherwise placed; until then the judge’s not-guilty-by-reason-of-insanity finding resolves criminal culpability while leaving disposition and treatment to upcoming proceedings.