Latest news with #TrevorMiller
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Woman says former firefighter sexually abused her, fears he will avoid punishment
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — FOX4 spoke with a woman who said she's worried that a former metro firefighter will avoid punishment after she said he sexually assaulted her as a child. FOX4 has agreed to protect her identity. Independence police chief on leave, fires back at 'baseless rumors' in FOX4 interview The former metro firefighter, who has been hailed a hero, is charged with criminal sodomy. There was a hearing for him Thursday in Johnson County, but not much happened. The unidentified woman said she is a survivor of childhood sexual abuse at the hands of Trevor Miller. The City of Overland Park and the Overland Park Fire Department (OPFD) are aware of an investigation into a former OPFD employee. 'As soon as the city became aware of the allegations, the former employee was placed on administrative leave,' a spokesperson with the OPFD told FOX4. 'Within a week of being placed on leave, the employee submitted his intention to retire immediately. 'He is no longer an employee of the city or the fire department. The city and Fire department are fully cooperating with the Johnson County Sheriff's Office investigation.' Miller was employed with the city from 1990 to 2023. 'He should be held more accountable for what he's done,' she said. 'For me, personally, growing up, I looked to him as a hero. He's a firefighter for the city. He saves lives.' Miller has been charged with one count of criminal sodomy, from an incident that happened when she was 14. The charge was filed in 2024. 'I knew Trevor growing up as my mother's friend. I saw him occasionally,' she told FOX4. The incident, which occurred in 2012, was reported to law enforcement in October of 2023. At that time, she said Miller was an adult she thought she could confide in. 'In the summer of 2012, I ended up meeting up with him,' she said. 'He took me out to look at Harleys. He taught me how to pump my gas, and he took me to his house and did inappropriate things to me and took me home.' She said she's worried that Miller may get offered a plea agreement – instead of being held accountable for what he's done. Miller has pleaded not guilty to the charge. The case was continued Thursday. The City of Overland Park's website still highlights his efforts to bring a 9/11 memorial to town. 'I don't think he is someone to be looked to as a respectable, trusted member of the community,' she said. 'People should know he's a monster.' Court documents also show that Miller was involved with the 'Camp Inferno' program, which introduced girls to firefighting—and 'he had to be reminded he wasn't there for socializing.' Records show he exchanged information with campers. 'I would definitely say there was grooming. I would definitely say there was sexual abuse,' she said. 'I do encourage people to come forward, but I definitely understand why many don't.' She told FOX4 that she remained silent until 2023, but was driven by two factors to speak out: Having a child of her own The birth of Miller's daughter FOX4 made several attempts to contact Miller's attorney by phone and email; neither inquiry was returned. FOX4 also reached out to the Johnson County District Attorney, who did not comment on the case. Miller has another hearing scheduled for mid-July. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Business Profile: Innovating dining
May 18—COLFAX — The smell of garlic sauteing on the stove permeated the dining room of Wild Ember Kitchen in Colfax at midday. The staff was preparing garlic to season tacos the restaurant had planned for a special Cinco de Mayo dinner that evening. The tacos are among the many dishes Colfax High School graduate Trevor Miller has developed for the restaurant with fellow chef and significant other Amanda Packer since the business's debut about a year ago. "I don't like to lean toward anything specific," Miller said. "I just like to have freedom to do whatever food I would like. So that's what I like about the name. It doesn't make you think of any one thing." Often that freedom leads him to put tacos on the menu. Street tacos ($18) with seared pork belly are one of the biggest sellers. They come in corn tortillas with cabbage, corn salsa, jalapenos, cotija (a type of cheese) and aji verde (a Peruvian sauce). For Cinco de Mayo, Miller was trying a new taco with beef tongue, curious to see how it would be received. "We've got a pretty good following," he said. "People come here and try new things they might not try anywhere else because they know it's going to be good." The innovation at Wild Ember Kitchen extends beyond the food. The Colfax Downtown Association renovated the former bank in a single-story, 3,521-square-foot building into a restaurant incubator. The majority of the money for the upgrade came from a $2.26 million grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce. Miller and Packer earned the opportunity to use the space through a competitive process and are leasing it at a subsidized rate. I spoke with Miller and Packer about how they developed the restaurant, what their plans are for the venture and what led them to Colfax. An edited version of our conversation follows: Elaine Williams: The availability of an incubator restaurant space with subsidized rent prompted you to scrap your plans for a food truck and open here. Could you share more about how that happened? Trevor Miller: We moved to Colfax because our oldest son was 5 years old and we wanted him to attend school here. We were going to open a food truck. I started doing food at The Cellar Wine and Beer Bar in Colfax. The downtown association kept hounding me to apply for this. This is a dream. I always wanted to have a restaurant like this in Colfax, but it's expensive. The buildings are old. It's just a daunting idea to come in with a few million dollars to remodel. But since it's a downtown association that owns and it was a government grant, I was like "All right. Now I'll give it a shot now because there's not a whole bunch on the line." We just order the food, the plates and the liquor and get all the licensing for it. If we had to come in and buy a building and remodel it — I love Colfax, but I wouldn't have picked Colfax. EW: Let's switch gears and talk about your career backgrounds. Trevor, you discovered your love of cooking at Arby's in Colfax and completed your training at Le Cordon Bleu of Culinary Arts in Portland, Ore. Amanda, you earned your culinary credentials at the Le Cordon Bleu of Culinary Arts in Scottsdale, Ariz. How did your paths first cross? Daily headlines, straight to your inboxRead it online first and stay up-to-date, delivered daily at 7 AM TM: We were both working at a high-end resort about 45 minutes north of Missoula. The average vacation there is about a quarter of a million dollars for high-end clientele. I was a line cook because I wasn't going to stay more than one summer. When I met her, she kept me there. Amanda Packer: I was the private chef for any clients that wanted a private dining experience. I'd create a menu either to their specifications or I would surprise them. When I was doing that, I was the pastry chef. Working at that resort was one of the assignments we had over about five years. EW: That sounds glamorous. How did you decide to return to Colfax? TM: It comes with its own headaches and very little time off. We were in a high-demand side of the industry. It was fun, but once you have two boys, you just kind of take a step back and make it easier to have more of a work-life balance. EW: Let's talk more about what you're doing at Wild Ember Kitchen. Besides tacos, what can diners expect? TM: We serve a lot of hamburgers. The Whitman County burger is a sirloin, brisket patty with seared ham, American cheese and garlic aioli. I try to keep the ingredients as simple as possible and make sure they work well together. We have a full bar. We have about a dozen drinks that we change seasonally. One is the Golden Paradise with bourbon, house-made pineapple simple syrup, cardamom bitters and orange peel. EW: You mentioned this business plays a broader role than just being a restaurant. What do you mean by that? TM: It's pretty diverse. We get a lot of locals. We get a lot of people from all over, including Lewiston and Spokane. They come and meet. We had four ladies sit here that hadn't seen each other in 10 years. They sat and chit-chatted for five hours. They love that there's a new place they can come in and sit and have some good drinks and good food. EW: Now that you're hitting your stride, how long do you think you'll be here? TM: I don't know. We're planning to do catering. We could extend the lease as long as five years or stay longer if no one is interested in the space. My parents live 15 minutes outside of town on a farm. Our two sons spend a lot of time with them in the summer. There's no rush to decide. Williams is the business editor of the Tribune and Moscow-Pullman Daily News. She may be contacted at ewilliam@ or (208) 848-2261. About Wild Ember Kitchen Address: 102 N. Main St., Colfax Hours: 3-9 p.m. Sunday, Monday and Wednesday; and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.
