Millers’ court date in racially charged incident in Virginia City postponed until May 2025

The Miller family, who was at the center of a racially charged incident during the Hot August Nights event in Virginia City, will not attend the pretrial conference originally scheduled for Thursday. Instead, their next hearing will be held in May 2025, according to the Virginia City Court of Justice.

Gary, Janis, and Tiffany Miller were arrested on August 7 following accusations from Ricky Johnson, who said they used a racial slur and assaulted him while he was collecting signatures for a petition at an event on August 2. The Millers were originally scheduled to appear in court on Nov. 14.

Gary Miller faces charges of breach of peace and unlawful conduct because of actual or perceived race. Janis Miller is charged with battery, and their daughter Tiffany is charged with delaying a peace officer. All charges are misdemeanors.

Johnson described the incident: “The first thing this guy said was, ‘Get the N-word out of my face.’ ‘What did you say?’ I said. He replied: ‘There is a tree hanging in my backyard for a nigger (like you).'”

Johnson recorded a video of the encounter that has received more than 1 million views on TikTok. In the video, Johnson asks Gary Miller to repeat his statement about the hanging tree, to which Miller replies that the tree is in Johnson’s backyard. Janis Miller is seen in the video touching Johnson’s arm and trying to push him away, which Johnson describes as an assault.

“I want them to be prosecuted. That’s the justice I want; to be charged. And I want it to be made known that this will not be accepted in Virginia City, Nevada. It will not be accepted here. It will not be accepted anywhere.” ” said Johnson.

Hot August Nights permanently banned the Millers from the annual event, condemning their behavior. The incident was also condemned by Nevada’s top leaders, including Gov. Joe Lombardo and Attorney General Aaron Ford.