WYOMING - James Lenox "J.L." Miller, of rural Wyoming, Del., died February 25, 2012 at home of metastatic head and neck cancer caused by the human papilloma virus. He was 57. The son of James E. and Barbara L. Miller, Mr. Miller was born in Kent General Hospital and was a proud Delaware native. He graduated from Caesar Rodney High School and the University of Delaware, where he earned a bachelor's degree in political science. Mr. Miller's father was a longtime journalist who spent most of his career as a reporter, editor, and columnist for the Delaware State News in Dover. Despite his father's example, the younger Mr. Miller followed in his father's footsteps, choosing the byline "J.L. Miller" in 1977 to distinguish him from his dad. (J.L.'s wife used to joke that she knew him "before he had initials.") Mr. Miller's mother was the first female attorney in private practice south of the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal, and also served one term on the Justice of the Peace Court. Her son was very proud of her. Mr. Miller met the love of his life, Lyn B. Arnold, at a party while the two attended the University of Delaware. She somehow was able to overlook his many faults, and after a whirlwind 13-year courtship the two were united in marriage (much to the relief of the bride's mother) on May 9, 1987. Mr. Miller began his career in journalism at The Journal, a now-defunct weekly newspaper in Denton, Md. He covered the courts and the Caroline County Commission, and also managed to work in a story about his dislike for crickets, complete with a photograph of his foot descending on one of the hapless creatures. That may have had something to do with The Journal's lack of commercial success. Mr. Miller signed on with the Delaware State News in December 1977, where he covered Sussex County Council and the criminal courts. And in a grueling, one-man negotiating session supervised by Dover police, Mr. Miller won the release of Dover attorney John Grady, who was being held hostage in his State Street office by a disgruntled client armed with a .357 Magnum. Mr. Miller eventually took on the Delaware General Assembly as his next beat. It was there that he formed his longstanding love/hate relationship with politicians and politics in general. He served a short stint as assistant news editor before realizing that he needed more money than the State News was willing to pay. He left Dover in 1984 to take a job as a copy editor with the Daily Press in Newport News, Va., but his heart and his sweetheart remained in Delaware. In 1986 Mr. Miller was offered a copy-editing job at The News Journal, and he jumped at the chance to return to his beloved Delaware and his bride-to-be. He served on the features copy desk from 1986 to 1995, finishing out his assignment on the desk as the "slot" -- the editor who makes the final edit before the story goes to print. He was known as a strict grammarian, a master of the AP Stylebook and a man with a flair for writing colorful headlines on deadline. In 1995 a reporting job in the Dover Bureau of The News Journal became available, and Mr. Miller applied for it. On the first day of his reporting tryout a murder-suicide occurred two blocks from the bureau -- bad luck for the victims, but good luck for Mr. Miller. That coverage helped land him the job. In the years that followed, Mr. Miller covered a wide range of stories and beats, spending many years covering the city of Dover and nearby communities. He was particularly proud of coverage that helped lead to the ouster of the mayor of Smyrna and his stories on a near-rebellion by residents of the town of Cheswold. He brought to light the long-hidden story of Dr. Jerome Niles' black-market baby operation in Middletown in the 1930s and '40s, a topic that touched his heart and the hearts of adoptees across the nation. He also covered the criminal courts, witnessing three executions. But the General Assembly beckoned, and Mr. Miller was dragged back into Legislative Hall, where his love/hate relationship with politics blossomed anew. He prided himself on his workmanlike coverage of the House of Representatives and a solo stint covering both houses during most of the 2008 legislative session. Upon his retirement on June 30, the House honored him with a tribute lauding him as the "elder statesman" of the Legislative Hall press corps and Vice President Joe Biden telephoned Sunday, February 19, 2012 him to encourage him in his fight against cancer. Mr. Miller learned to love the outdoors from his father, who took the young lad squirrel hunting and taught him to sit silently on a log and feel the rhythms of the forest. That led to Mr. Miller's longtime love of nature and contempt for the developers who have raped his native state. Although he had a lifelong love of hunting, he didn't have time to indulge in it until he reached his 40s. Deer hunting became his passion (as did venison in all its forms) and he eventually purchased wooded acreage near Chapeltown as his private hunting preserve. He also hunted dove and waterfowl, but rarely shot his limit. Mr. Miller was a former member of the Dutch Neck Hunt Club and a current member of the Delmar Waterfowl Club. He also was an avid student of Delaware history, with a strong interest in the antebellum and Civil War years. He was particularly intrigued by the stories of Delawareans who fought for the Confederacy. Mr. Miller had a 32-year perfect attendance record for the Georgetown Oyster Eat, and often told his friends that if they didn't see him there, that meant he was dead. (Brother Oyster Eaters, I'll be there in spirit. Save the last dance for me.) Mr. Miller's only regret is that he did not live long enough to enjoy a lengthy retirement with his wife at the couple's lovely home, "Long Looked for, Come at Last." (The name comes from a plantation in Southern Maryland that was owned by his first maternal ancestor to reach these shores.) He had truly looked forward to growing old in rural Wyoming, sitting in a rocking chair next to his beloved and saying things like "by cracky." Sadly, that was not to be. Mr. Miller was a member of People's Church of Dover, where he was baptized, sang in the junior choir as a youngster, and where he returned in his adult years as a faithful worshipper. He served on the church's board of trustees and as chairman of the board of management. He thanks the Lord and his wife for leading this lost sheep back into the fold. Mr. Miller is survived by the love of his life, Lyn B. Arnold; his mother, Barbara Lenox Miller; along with other relatives and a cousin who was very dear to him, Barbara Geraghty. He was predeceased by his brother, Richard L. Miller, a poet who died too young. Mr. Miller has nothing against flowers, and his wife might appreciate a few. But he also encourages tax-deductible contributions to the American Cancer Society, the People's Church of Dover or the National Rifle Association Civil Defense Fund. Or, just take a kid hunting. Funeral service will be at 11 a.m., Saturday, March 3, 2012, at People's Church of Dover, 46 S. Bradford St. Family will receive friends on hour prior. Letters of condolence may be sent, and guestbook signed at torbertfuneral.com.