A Florida judge has granted a restraining order against Rep. Cory Mills after his ex-girlfriend, Lindsey Langston, who currently holds the title of Miss United States, accused the congressman of harassment and threats involving intimate material.
Florida Circuit Judge Fred Koberlein Jr. issued the order on Tuesday, Oct. 14, barring the 45-year-old Republican representative from coming within 500 feet of Langston’s home or workplace or contacting her in any way until Jan. 1, according to Politico, NBC News, and The Hill.
The judge found “reasonable cause to believe [Langston] is in imminent danger of becoming the victim of another act of dating violence” without the order, the outlets reported. He also ruled that evidence supported Langston’s claim that Mills caused her “substantial emotional distress,” noting that Mills had not provided a “credible rebuttal” to her testimony.
Langston, a Republican state committeewoman, said she began dating Mills in late 2021 and filed for the restraining order in August. According to NBC News, she alleged that after their breakup, Mills threatened to harm anyone she dated and to distribute nude photos and videos of her.
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Langston previously filed a police report with the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office in July, stating that Mills repeatedly contacted her after their breakup and threatened to release “nude images and videos of her, to include recorded videos of her and Cory engaging in sexual acts,” according to a police incident report cited by media outlets. The report noted the alleged harassment began when Mills believed Langston was seeing other people following their breakup.
Mills denied the allegations in a statement to CBS News, saying, “These claims are false and misrepresent the nature of my interactions. I have always conducted myself with integrity, both personally and in service to Florida’s 7th District.”
In messages cited by NBC News, Mills allegedly told Langston, “I can send him a few videos of you as well[.] Oh, I still have them,” and in another, warned that she “may want to tell every guy you date that if we run into each other at any point. Strap up cowboy[.]”
Both testified during court hearings in Lake City, where Mills argued that his “strap up” remark was not a threat but a figure of speech suggesting a “wild ride.” He also claimed that his phone had been damaged and replaced, and that any intimate material was lost. Mills said he had intended to show videos of Langston baking to demonstrate that they had a relationship, according to Politico.
However, Judge Koberlein wrote that he did not find Mills’ statements credible. “The court, considering the totality of the testimony and the circumstances, does not find [Mills’] testimony concerning the intimate videos to be truthful,” the ruling said. “Even had the respondent’s testimony been truthful, his response is irrelevant because there was no evidence presented suggesting [Langston] knew the respondent no longer had possession of their intimate videos,” the judge added.
The restraining order follows an earlier incident in which police investigated an alleged assault involving Mills and another woman. Both denied that any assault occurred, and no charges were filed, according to media reports.
