An Arkansas judge has dismissed the murder case against a father who said he shot and killed a man to protect his teenage daughter from an alleged predator.
Circuit Court Judge Ralph Wilson Jr. dismissed the case against 37-year-old Aaron Spencer on Thursday, June 4, after it was revealed that law enforcement lost a dash camera memory card that may have captured the shooting.
Spencer had been set to go to trial in the coming weeks on a second-degree murder charge in connection with the October 2024 death of 67-year-old Michael Fosler.
Spencer had pleaded not guilty and maintained that he acted to protect his child.
According to court documents, Fosler had allegedly sexually assaulted Spencer’s then-13-year-old daughter between June and July 2024. In September 2024, Fosler was charged with dozens of sexual offenses involving the girl.
At the time of his death, Fosler was out on bond.
The fatal shooting happened on Oct. 8, 2024.
According to court documents, Spencer woke up that night and realized his daughter was missing. He later found Fosler driving with his daughter in the passenger seat.
Spencer then drove Fosler off the highway. After Fosler got out of his vehicle, Spencer shot him.
Spencer then got his daughter to safety in his own car, reloaded his gun and called 911. During the call, he reported that he had shot the man.
But the case took a major turn in April 2026, when it was discovered that a Lonoke County Sheriff’s Office detective had lost video evidence that may have captured the shooting.
The missing evidence was a dash camera memory card.
Spencer’s defense argued that the officer’s failure to properly document the memory card supported a “bad faith” argument.
The defense claimed the issue involved possible concealment of evidence, failure to follow rules and professional obligations, omission of evidence from reports, and failure to properly preserve or disclose evidence.
According to court documents, the defense also argued that the missing evidence had “apparent” value to Spencer’s case and that no comparable evidence could be obtained by any other reasonable means.
Judge Wilson called dismissal an “extraordinary and extreme remedy.”
But in his ruling, he said the conduct by law enforcement was serious enough to justify throwing out the case.
“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 dismissal read.
The ruling means Spencer will not face trial on the murder charge, at least for now.
The case had drawn major attention because of the allegations involving Spencer’s daughter and his claim that he acted when the justice system failed to protect her.
Months before the case was dismissed, Spencer announced that he was running for Lonoke County sheriff.
“I’m the father who acted to protect his daughter when the system failed,” Spencer wrote in his campaign announcement on Facebook. “And through my own fight for justice, I have seen firsthand the failures in law enforcement and in our circuit court. I refuse to stand by while others face these same failures.”
On March 3, Spencer won the Republican primary for sheriff with 53.5% of the vote, according to the Arkansas Advocate.
He is now expected to face Democratic primary winner Brian Mitchell Sr. in the general election this fall.
The stunning dismissal has added another twist to an already emotional case involving a father, his daughter, a dead man accused of abusing her, and missing evidence that a judge said was too important to ignore.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, help is available through the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE or at rainn.org. You can also text STRENGTH to the Crisis Text Line at 741741.
