Teen With Military Dreams Killed In Murder-Suicide
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Michelle Lynne Miller had her life planned out.
She was signed up to go into the U.S. Army reserves right after her graduation from Rockville High School this spring, her father said. She had wanted to go into the Army since elementary school.
"She wanted to serve her country, she wanted to see the world, she wanted to finance her education," her father, Kevin Miller, said from his Rockville home Monday evening.
Michelle Miller, 17, was found dead Monday morning at the Germantown home of Staff Sgt. Adam Anthony Arndt.
Montgomery County Police said Arndt shot her and then fatally shot himself. Detectives say Arndt, 31, was assigned to coordinate Miller's entry into the reserves.
Kevin Miller said he had not met Arndt, but that his daughter had seemed "a little smitten with this guy." Kevin Miller said he believed Arndt was the "man above her recruiter." He thinks Michelle Miller met Arndt about four or five months ago.
Kevin Miller said his daughter left their Rockville home about 9:15 p.m. Sunday, saying somebody in her platoon was suicidal. Kevin Miller said he was against that, but his daughter said she would be fine and promised to text him the address when she arrived.
The father said he got a "vague" text from her about the address, but she stopped responding to his texts and calls.
Kevin Miller called police around midnight. In the morning, he said, one of Michelle Miller's friends gave him details about where she might be.
Miller drove to the location and saw Michelle's car. No one answered the door, so he called police.
Officers had to break into the home. Miller waited outside until police came out and gave him the terrible news.
"She had her life taken away from her on one fell swoop," he said.
Miller described his daughter as a "stunningly beautiful girl." She wanted to be a psychotherapist and planned to go to college in Arizona, Miller said. She only needed credit to graduate from high school, but still took several classes, including courses at Montgomery College. Michelle lettered in basketball, soccer and lacrosse. Miller said she was supposed to play in a lacrosse game Monday night.
(Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
