Declared Dead by Law, This Man’s Shocking Courtroom Return to Apply for a Driving License Will Leave You Speechless

Ever felt so tangled in debt that your only escape seemed to be vanishing into thin air? Well, meet Donald E. Miller, Jr. from Ohio — a man who literally pulled off the ultimate disappearing act to dodge his $25,000 debt back in the ’90s. Married with daughters and sinking deeper into the red, Miller chose to walk out on his life… and get legally declared dead. Here’s the kicker: over a decade later, he popped back up, not for a heartwarming reunion, but just to snag a driver’s license — which U.S. law insists only “living” people can have. Cue the chaos that followed: a wife turned bigamist, a judge siding with the declared-dead dude being “still dead,” and a tale so bizarre it almost seems scripted for a dark comedy. Dive into this wild story where the line between life, death, and debt gets hilariously blurry. LEARN MORE

People in debt have resorted to desperate measures to solve their situations; borrowing from loved ones, gambling, loan sharks (which can lead to further debt), or taking more drastic action.

One man decided to do the latter. A man from Ohio, U.S, Donald E. Miller, Jr. who was married with daughters, had been drowning in debt back in 1986. By 1994, his debt had gone up to $25,000 (£18,617). Not seeing a way out, he decided to simply walk out on his family and disappear.

Eight years after walking out without leaving any spousal support, his debt remained, so his wife Robin went to a judge so she could declare him dead, which would rid her of the financial burden.

Thankfully, she was able eligible to receive Social Security death benefits up to $30,000 (£22,340) as the court had agreed Miller was most likely to be dead, having disappeared for almost a decade. Except he wasn’t.

“Your honour, I’m still alive.” (Getty)

More than a decade later in 2005, Miller resurfaced, not in a dramatic reunion with his long-lost wife and daughters, but because he wanted a driving license. But U.S laws states one needs to be alive to obtain a driving license – naturally.

This complicated the situation for Robin who would not only have to return the benefits if he was declared alive – with interest – but it also made her a bigamist as she had remarried.

So she had no choice but to oppose the claim that Miller was still alive, which astonishingly, the judge agreed with.

All for a driving license (Getty)

The judge hadn’t just sympathised with the wife, but had to honour the stipulation that comes with the rule; a person only has three years to challenge the declaration that he or she is dead. And as Miller had surpassed that limit, he could no longer challenge the notion he was dead – even if he was there in the court room in the flesh.

But keen to get his license, Miller challenged the court, instead petitioning the U.S. Social Security Administration to give him a new number so he could get a driver’s license and a job.

The administration assigned him a new number so he could move on with his life, however, they ended up pursuing Robin to return the death benefit. Thankfully for her sake, they later dropped the claim so Robin no longer had to pay the sum back.

Technically, Miller remains legally dead to this day.