Man reappears 11 years after he was pronounced dead but court says he must stay dead.

If his appeal in later days is not uphold by the court, a man from Ohio though living would  legally spend the rest of his life as a dead man as a Hancock county probate court judge on Monday, turned down his application  that his legal death pronouncement be reversed.

Donald Miller,61, told the court that he disappeared in 1986 because he lost his job and couldn't take up his responsibilities. His disappearance left his ex - wife Robin Miller to cater for their two children and herself.

In 1994, 8 years after his disappearance,  Donald was legally pronounced dead and his wife started receiving child care support from the relevant authorities.

In 2005 Donald Miller returned Ohio. He said he returned to Ohio with no "knowledge of his legal death" and hoped to reestablish his social security number.

But around the time of Donald miller's legal death,  he owed Robin the sum of $25,ooo in child care and Robin started receiving social security death benefits since 1994.

"In over 40 years,  I've never come across a case like this," judge Alan Davies told CNN. "In the end though because of statutes it was a pretty open-and-shut case."

The case would have been very complicated had the Hancock county probate court judge ruled in favour of Donald. Striking out the legal death on Donald would result in Robin having to return all the monies she received as child care support for her children.

But according to the statutes in Ohio, once a person is legally pronounced dead, he remains dead after three years of such pronouncement .

"There would have been possibilities that my client would have to pay back what she received from social security," Robin's attorney Jamea Hammer said

"We certainly did not want to open that door, so we're satisfied with the outcome"

Hammer said that his client does not have any ill-will towards her husband despite her relief.

Donald has 30 days to appeal the judgment.