GALVESTON COUNTY, Texas (KBTX) — Tim Miller, founder of Texas EquuSearch, has spent more than two decades helping families find missing loved ones.
On Tuesday, 41 years after his daughter’s murder, an arrest was made.
Miller’s daughter, Laura Miller, was kidnapped and murdered in 1984, according to Texas EquuSearch. Her death inspired Miller to found the organization in August 2000. It began as a horse-mounted search-and-recovery team.
Officials announced that a Galveston County grand jury indicted a Bacliff man on charges tied to two murders in an area known as the Texas Killing Fields.
James Elmore, 61, charged with manslaughter and evidence tampering in the deaths of two women
James Dolph Elmore Jr., 61, faces a manslaughter charge and two felony counts of tampering with a witness or tampering with evidence, Galveston County District Attorney Kenneth Cusick said Wednesday. Elmore was arrested Tuesday and is in custody, Cusick said.
The investigation will show the connection between Elmore and the murders of Laura Miller and Audrey Cook.
The Texas Killing Fields is an area in League City where the remains of about 30 women, including Laura Miller, were found over decades, according to authorities.
Cusick said he spoke with Tim Miller in December and promised to review all evidence obtained since 1983.
Prosecutors Katelyn Willis and Adam Poole organized and reviewed the evidence that led to the charges.
Longtime suspect Clyde Hedruck had charges prepared before he died just over a week ago, Cusick said.
Location: Galveston County, TX
Cusick said significant headway was made Tuesday, but Tim Miller said the investigation is far from over.
“After 41 and a half damn years, I’m not going to jeopardize anything that all of us have worked for out there,” Miller said. “We got other girls to find. We got closure to bring more families.”
Miller praised Galveston County Detective Corey Wilson for his work on the case and said he will continue working with Texas EquuSearch.
Both men plan to pursue leads.
“Don’t think Tim Miller’s going to walk away from Texas EquuSearch and quit helping families,” Cusick said. “I think we’re just getting started again.”
Copyright 2026 KBTX. All rights reserved.