Aaron Spencer, an army veteran and local sheriff candidate, has been cleared of the murder charges against him after fatally shooting a man who allegedly sexually assaulted his teenage daughter. This followed a judge’s finding that law enforcement mishandled a specific detail of the case.
An Arkansas judge has dropped murder charges against a sheriff candidate and Army veteran who was accused of shooting a man who allegedly sexually assaulted his teenage daughter.
Aaron Spencer was originally charged with second-degree murder for the October 2024 shooting death of 67-year-old Michael Fosler in Lonoke County.
Court records say Judge Ralph Wilson Jr. dismissed the case on Thursday.
Prosecutors had said Spencer found Fosler alone with his teenage daughter inside Fosler’s pickup truck late at night on October 8, 2024. Authorities said Spencer forced the truck off the road and then called 911, reporting that he had shot the man.
The judge said that police handled the dash-camera and SD card evidence from Spencer’s truck poorly. Also, they noted that throwing out the case is a very rare and extreme step in any criminal trial.
Aaron Spencer has murder charge dropped after police blunder
“However, based on the totality of the circumstances and the unique, specific, and particular facts and circumstances of this case, the Court finds that conduct by law enforcement was so egregious that dismissal of this case is warranted,” the judge wrote.
Spencer’s lawyers argued that police lost the SD card, which may have contained video of the incident, and failed to explain when it went missing or how it was lost.
The judge ruled that “the loss or destruction of the internal SD memory card of the dash camera has adversely impaired the Defendant’s ability to defend himself pursuant to these defenses, and thus his right to a fair trial,” according to court documents.
Per Fox News, court records revealed that Fosler had previously been charged with multiple sexual offenses involving Spencer’s teenage daughter and was out on bond when the fatal shooting occurred.
Just months before the incident, Spencer had celebrated a major political victory. In February, he won the Republican primary for Lonoke County sheriff, defeating the incumbent, promising to bring change and reform to the county’s law enforcement agency.
“This father should have never been charged for protecting his child”
“Through my own fight for justice, I have seen firsthand the failures in law enforcement and in our circuit court,” Spencer said in a campaign video. “And I refuse to stand by while others face these same failures.”
Spencer has admitted that he had shot Fosler. However, even though he acknowledged his role in the incident, he pleaded not guilty to the murder charges filed against him.
The high-profile case was scheduled to go before a jury on June 22, as questions surrounding the deadly confrontation continued to draw public attention.
Spencer never denied pulling the trigger. He admitted to fatally shooting Fosler but maintained that he was not guilty of murder.
As the case continued to attract widespread attention, Spencer was preparing to face a jury trial scheduled for June 22. Spencer’s attorney, Erin Cassinelli, said she is thankful for the court’s decision.
“No member of this family should ever again be forced to walk into a courtroom and relive this horror,” she said in a statement. “This father should have never been charged for protecting his child.”