Insurmountable Injustice

On July 30, 2022, Nicolae Miu, 52 years old, a double degree college graduate, avid fisherman with a spotless criminal record was celebrating the two-year mark of his journey through quadruple bypass surgery. The special day was to be spent with friends on the Apple River in Somerset, Wisconsin. What began as a peaceful afternoon became a living nightmare, when a member of Miu’s group dropped his cellphone in the water. Knowing they would be on the river, Miu had brought along goggles and a snorkel, and immediately offered to use them to help locate the lost phone. The lost phone was in a black floating case, but Miu knew that with the lanyard attached to the phone case, it could easily become caught up on the river rock bottom.

He left his group, moving away from their vision of him, and started scanning the water for the phone. While doing this, a large group of 17–18-year-old boys yelled out to him asking what he was doing. He replied, “looking for my friend’s phone.” One of the boys held up a cellphone in a black floating case identical to that of his friend’s lost phone, and yelled out, “Is this the phone you’re looking for” and “what’s the password,” trying to make Miu think THEIR phone case was the phone he was looking for.

He thought those teens were Samaritans on the river and were holding the found cellphone up for him to come get. But Miu was unaware that these teens were on the river that day to get social media content for a page they managed, AND that they had been videotaping throughout the afternoon, trying to get good content. They were BAITING him over to them by holding up a phone after they learned he was looking for a friend’s lost phone. Miu, thinking this was a group of good people trying to get his attention so he could retrieve his friend’s lost phone, turned around towards them trying to take 3 big steps to keep up to their tubes, because the river was flowing in that direction and away from him downstream. Miu’s sandal got caught up on the rocky river bottom and he began to fall forward into the water. Naturally, his arm reached out trying to brace the fall. This was the point his arm touched one of this group’s tubes. This contact happened WHILE HE WAS IN A DOWNWARD FALL. It was additionally evident he was falling, because he dropped the goggles and snorkel he had in his hands (that he was using just prior, to look for the phone). That is when the teens realized THEY HAD THEIR VICTIM. -THEY HAD SOMETHING THAT WOULD MAKE GREAT SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT. Their intent then changed to belittling this man, to scream loudly, laughing and taunting him, -falsely accusing him of being a raper and pedophile, all in order to PURPOSELY ignite an emotional charge in all of the other people around them on the river. IT WORKED. More people began streaming over believing the lies, thinking this man was TRULY a raper and pedophile. The group continued screaming out made-up LIES that he was "looking for little girls", which was like yelling "fire" in a theater. What would you expect was going to happen? 

Drunken Madison Coen, from another tubing group, heard this commotion. She took it upon herself to approach Miu. He thought she was coming to help diffuse this ignited situation the teens had caused. NO! Madison took no time to investigate the actual situation and joined in on the screaming. Now 13-17 people were out of their tubes coming towards Miu. They were screaming, yelling “for the culture,” and pointing at him to go down river into deeper water (and further away from the safety of his own tubing group, who were situated behind them). The now even larger group formed a near-circle around him, not allowing him to go in the safer direction he was requesting. They continued pointing and trying to force him to go in the opposite direction, to TURN HIS BACK on this ignited group and go down river alone without at least a visual of his own group, petrified him. He stood absolutely bewildered among the screaming, swearing and laughing voices that seemed to be coming from every direction. He was now experiencing complete disbelief and confusion. Madison (the drunk women he thought was coming to help diffuse the chaos), had now moved 3 inches from his face SCREAMING and pointing her finger right in his face to "GO". He pointed in the opposite direction than they wanted him to go. HE WAS TRYING TO EXPLAIN over the heckling, laughing and screaming that his group was in the opposite direction. The teens were now squealing in delight as they stated, "I got this all on camera". Miu now felt utter fear and confusion. His expression was not a "smirk"; as the DA called it during the trial. It's a facial reaction many people have when put in an awful, uncomfortable environment-similar to laughing at a funeral. It's the body’s involuntary response to very uncomfortable situations. At this point Miu put his hand in his pocket and grasped onto his pocketknife. The pocketknife he had brought along that day in order to cut the twine given to them on the river, which secures groups of tubes together as they float. What we already know is that in this type of flight/fight/FREEZE reaction the mind goes into an instinctive survival mode. Prioritizing automatic reactions over deliberate decision-making. This was an unconscious primitive response that Miu had no control over. This is further backed with the fact that Miu didn’t even look down at the knife. He was FROZEN IN FEAR. Yes, FREEZE/FROZEN is a response that goes right along with Fight or Flight. He had tunnel vision. His pupils were clearly dilated, and eyes open wide, like the saying "a deer in headlights".  In this frozen state his brain did not allow him to yell, he could not announce a knife, this is factual in this frozen response because he never said a single word to them about anything at this point of the event. The teens were now surrounding Miu, circling in on him like a pack of hungry wolves waiting, waiting for something that could ignite the crowd even more. 

Madison, while screaming 3 inches from his face and taking up an enormous amount of his frontal body space, then put her cellphone closer to his face and her hand up to his chest, touching him. He lifted his arm up and turned his body in an attempt to create more distance between this obnoxious screaming drunk woman and himself, as well as motion again to his group. In this motion Madison's body brushed up against his body. This brushing against her is what Madison then called a “punch.” Madison yells, “he punched me.” However, Madison remains standing, still holding her sunglasses, her vape, beer and cellphone. There was never any redness or marks on Madison’s face. Although she claimed she took pictures of a red mark, but when asked by police to provide them, she stated they had been “deleted.” Nevertheless, this was what led the pack of wolves to attack. They then unleashed themselves. Punching and throwing Miu into the rocky waters over and over, one after another taking turns beating him and holding his head underwater. Miu was able to briefly get back onto his feet, his brain now completely in an instinctive state, started to fight back in defense of his life, with the knife. Everyone that was stabbed was actively coming AT HIM. Again, only those who were actively coming at him in that moment, were injured. Their own bodies, as they came forward at him are what caused their injuries from the knife.

As the flood of people stopped attacking him, he then was able to get up and WALKED directly to his group. He was in complete brain SHOCK. At some point he realized the knife was in his hand, the sight of this made him physically sick, causing him to lose control of his bowels. (A common reaction when faced with a life-or-death situation.) He tossed the knife on the riverbank having little to no sense of the true reality that had just taken place. He continued to his group, never leaving the area. He was nearly catatonic as he sat back in his tube. Over and over, he said, "I don't know...I don't know what happened"; Because in the state his brain was in, he would have had a very hard time recalling details of ANYTHING that just took place. As he sat next to them his own group called 911, he was actually heard in the 911 call, trying to explain it was his knife, but the dispatcher did not comprehend this given information. He was not running, he was not disguising himself, he was not trying to get away with anything, because HE knew he did not do anything wrong. They then WAITED as a group, because 911 said to them, "we have someone coming"; They didn't leave until people around them in other groups were saying to leave the area and continue to the exit. They exited the river with everyone else. Miu's brain would have been in the recovery mode from FIGHT/FLIGHT/FREEZE making the memories of the event disjointed, fuzzy and difficult to recall. As he was in the event, he had no idea if other events were taking place around him at the same time. He knew there was a large group of people and people kept streaming in from many other groups on the river. He would not have been able to comprehend the amount of damage that took place while he was fighting for his life. This fact confused his brain into thinking something else was continuing between those groups of people. Later he explained he thought they continued fighting each other, even after he got to his group. 

Why did he lie to the police about 2 knives? Simple answer. He heard on the radio chatter while the police were talking with him that they found or were looking for, 2 knives. An already disorganized brain is going to interpret facts heard from police over distorted real memories. He did not want to lie to police but he wanted to do the right thing and answer their questions. So, facts he heard from the police radio became what he thought must be reality. He was then interrogated as a suspect instead of the correct way a victim practicing the right to self-defense, would have been interrogated. He was able to recall all memories perfectly clear of events before the episode but had a very difficult time explaining the episode. He stated continuously throughout the interview with police that “I do not remember, can't remember, I just don't know.” This is absolutely how a victim of a crime would respond after this magnitude of fear. Because traumatic memories are well documented as disjointed, they may sound unreliable to law enforcement when the interrogation takes place. Especially since Miu was interviewed right away, before at least one sleep cycle which is recommended in these situations. This is what led Miu to this unjust sentence. His distorted memories were viewed to police, jury, judge and public as purposeful lies. The fact that the defense at trial never called one expert witness to testify to the extensive fact-based evidence we now have in fields of trauma neurobiology. The same defense team that led Miu to conviction of Murder, had just won a similar case (WI vs Rittenhouse). Coming off this victory Miu’s defense team overestimated their own ability to explain trauma neurobiology (fight/flight/freeze response) and did not call ANY expert counsel. There was an incomplete collection of physical evidence and NO attempt at collection of psychological evidence by the examiner. An appeal trial with testimony from expert witnesses that can explain, in detail, the neurobiology of a brain during and after life-or-death situations, must be presented for a fair trial. With the significant advancements in this field paired with newfound clinical published evidence, we as a society can no longer expect the general population of people to have enough understanding of this psychological response to make courtroom level decisions. A “general understanding” when it comes to legal proceedings is no longer sufficient. Miu was convicted on 1st degree reckless homicide and 4 counts of recklessly endangering safety.  As well as 1 count of battery.

His first trial has left him penniless. The insurmountable stress of this unjust conviction, financial loss, and intense public scrutiny has led to a complete breakdown of his marriage. Miu is not able to relinquish any marital funds. His unjust conviction created a ripple effect leading to restitution payments that now garnish 60% of all funds sent by his brother Mihai Miu, for his basic needs in prison.

A civil Lawsuit has been entered on behalf of 4 of the people injured during the attack on Miu. Without having any funds, Miu is unable to file Civil Lawsuits against his attackers, a lawsuit that has clear video evidence that Miu was subjected to slander as well as physical and emotional harm. 

WE NEED TO JOIN TOGETHER TO RIGHT THIS WRONG.  

All funds donated-will be used for the following:

1. Push forward with a counter claim Civil Lawsuit, holding the teens in this case as well as their parents responsible for their behavior.

2. APPEAL- this case will be appealed. We are working diligently to find a defense team that will appropriately defend Miu, we stand firm that this event was 100% self-defense and have significant evidence of failures presented by his first defense team that we know will finally bring this man the justice he deserves.

Conclusion- In the first trial, instead of the DA sharing facts on this case they attempted to sway opinions and decisions by appealing to people’s emotions. Promoting pity and compassion for the injured, over the right we have to defend ourselves from imminent death. Miu was fearing he was going to die. He had legitimate clear reasons to fear he was going to die. He had no safe direction to escape. He rightfully defended himself against his attackers during a life-or-death situation and is now serving 20 years in prison.