BY ANNIE HOLLER
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN

HODE — For over 20 years, the mention of the name Derryl Jackson Miller in Martin County and throughout Eastern Kentucky brings one solemn thought to mind: how could a young man of only 20 disappear without a trace?

According to information entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NAMUS) database, Miller was reported missing Dec. 30, 2005, by his mother, Barbara Miller.

Miller lived in Hode and was 20 years old at the time of his disappearance. He was described as a caucasian male, 5-foot-7, weighing approximately 145 pounds with brown hair and eyes. Miller had numerous tattoos on his body, including the initials D.J. on the back of his neck, a heart on his shoulder, a baby devil on his upper left arm, a second devil on his right shoulder, and a third on his right forearm. He was last seen wearing black jeans, a black hooded jacket and tennis shoes and was known to wear an Inez Middle School class ring.

At the time Miller went missing, Garmon Preece served as the sheriff of Martin County. Preece spoke with the Mountain Citizen and relayed information he and his department had gathered.

According to the former sheriff, Miller’s mother contacted him and asked him to come to her residence on Route 292 in Hode. She informed Preece that her son had already been missing for 2-3 weeks, and that she had delayed reporting because she was hopeful he would come back home.

Preece said she voiced concerns that her son may have committed an act of self-harm, saying that he was upset when he left her residence and was last seen walking down toward the river. She said her son had been prescribed medication to treat suicidal thoughts and tendencies.

Preece and his deputies walked the banks of the Tug River in the area where Miller’s mother said he was last seen, but found no trace of the missing man.

“Since his mother waited a while to file a report with me, two to three weeks had gone by, and that started us out at a disadvantage,” explained Preece.

“While talking to several people close to Derryl, I was told that he did not get along with his mother’s boyfriend at all, and that they had argued the last day he was at her home,” Preece added. “More than one person said they believed that the young man had simply walked away from the situation and didn’t want anything to do with them anymore … He wasn’t underage. If that was the case, he was within his legal right to choose to live elsewhere.”

Preece did not conduct a river search. He said enough time had elapsed that had Miller jumped into the cold December waters of the Tug Fork River, his body should have surfaced even if it had traveled downstream for miles.

Preece entered Miller’s information into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) in the hope that the added exposure would generate leads in the case, but none came.

“Just like in any missing persons case, you hear rumors and tips will be reported, but after pursuing all of them, we were still no further along than when we first started,” said Preece. “I always remained hopeful that the troubled young man had simply left the area. And I prayed he had found peace and a better life away from the chaos and family problems he had lived with.”

Preece said he never received proof of any scenario, and the case remains open more than 20 years later.

“I wish we could have found a body if he did in fact end his own life,” Preece said. “And that would have provided the closure needed to accept what happened. If he walked away of his own free will, I always figured that sooner or later he would reach out to his mom, especially after the breakup between her and the boyfriend that Derryl had so many issues with. It’s very sad that none of those things came to pass.”

Martin County Sheriff John Kirk said a detective with the Kentucky State Police contacted him 2-3 years ago. The detective was reviewing open missing persons cases in Eastern Kentucky. He asked Kirk if any new leads had come in and if Miller’s family remained in contact with his office.

Kirk said there has been no activity or update indicating that Miller walked away to start a new life, such as tax filings, driver’s license renewals or vehicle registrations.

“If Derryl Miller had walked away, there would be something to back up that claim,” Kirk said. “Unless someone has the capability and financial means to acquire credentials to assume a new identity, there would be something active on their background search, and that’s not the case.”

Communications between Miller’s mother and the sheriff’s office ceased before Kirk took office.

“According to what I have found, Derryl’s mother has died,” Kirk said.

Anyone with information regarding the disappearance of Derryl Miller can contact the sheriff’s department at 606-298-2828.

VANISHED is an ongoing series examining unsolved disappearances, suspicious deaths and cold cases across the region.