GALVESTON, Texas (Court TV) — The father of a teenager whose body was found abandoned on a site known as the Texas “Killing Fields” had a message for his daughter’s killer at sentencing on Thursday: Thank you.
James Elmore appears in court for sentencing on Sept. 3, 2026. (Court TV)
On Wednesday, a jury convicted James Elmore, 61, of manslaughter in the death of Laura Miller, 16. Laura disappeared from her home on Sept. 10, 1984, and was missing for two years before her remains were found in an area of League City, Texas, known as the “Killing Fields” after the remains of more than 30 people were found there in the 1980s and 1990s.
Although Elmore pleaded not guilty, Laura’s father, Tim Miller, said the defendant confessed multiple times. Miller spent more than 40 years searching for his daughter’s killer, founding the search and rescue organization Texas EquuSearch in her honor as he fought for justice. In 2022, Elmore reached out to Miller, asking for help finding his own missing daughter.
“I actually had some compassion for you,” Miller said in court Thursday. “I mean that from my heart.”
After Miller helped Elmore find his own missing child, Elmore confessed that he had been present the night of Laura’s death. He said another man, Clyde Hedrick, who lived two houses down from the Miller family, had abducted and sexually assaulted Laura before killing her by injecting her with cocaine. Elmore told Miller that he had provided the drugs, even as the defendant allegedly tried to convince Hedrick not to hurt the victim.
“You had a chance to protect Laura, and you chose not to,” Laura’s mother, Janet Miller, said. “Laura was just a kid.”
Tim Miller and his wife embrace after the verdict is announced in James Elmore’s trial. (Court TV)
While Tim Miller expressed anger toward Elmore from the witness stand earlier in the week, he said he was grateful to the defendant on Thursday. “Last night, I believe it was the first night I really felt some peace after all of this,” he said. “I still want to tell you thank you for coming forward.”
Both Tim and Janet Miller referenced interactions they’d had with Elmore’s son, who had been watching the trial but did not come to court on Thursday. “You’ve got a son right now, at this moment, that is posting things that he doesn’t want to live anymore,” Tim Miller told the defendant at the sentencing hearing. “Even though you murdered my daughter, I’m gonna do everything I can do to try and keep your son alive. I wish you the best. And unfortunately, you’re going to die in prison. I hope you can find peace someday in your life.”
Elmore elected to have the same jury that convicted him decide his sentence. The panel took 30 minutes to deliberate before imposing the maximum sentence of 20 years along with a $10,000 fine.
