Free Republic

LONOKE COUNTY, Ark. — A judge on Thursday dismissed the murder case against candidate for Lonoke County Sheriff Aaron Spencer. Spencer had been charged in 2024 with second-degree murder in the shooting death of Michael Fosler. According to case filings, Spencer shot Fosler after spotting the man driving his daughter. Fosler, at the time, was released on bond after being accused of raping Spencer’s underage daughter in July of 2024. The case was presided over by Special Circuit Court Judge Ralph Wilson Jr. In the order dismissing the case for due process violation. Wilson cited filings by Spencer’s lawyers, the...

A father accused of killing the man who allegedly raped and abducted his teenage daughter has won the Republican primary for county sheriff in Arkansas - despite him awaiting trial for murder. Aaron Spencer, 37, secured 53.5 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s Republican primary for Lonoke County sheriff, defeating longtime incumbent John Staley, who received 26.5 percent. The result puts Spencer in the unusual position of potentially becoming the top law enforcement officer in the same county that charged him with murder. Spencer has been accused of fatally shooting Michael Fosler, 67, in October 2024 after discovering the man...

Aaron Spencer won the Republican primary for county sheriff in central Arkansas as he awaits his murder trial in a case that’s drawn national attention and shaped much of his campaign message. Spencer got 53.5% of the vote, while longtime incumbent John Staley received 26.5% in the Lonoke County race, according to the Arkansas Secretary of State. Staley conceded in a Facebook message posted early Wednesday morning. A third Republican candidate, David Bufford, received almost 20% of the vote. In this politically conservative county where Donald Trump won almost 76% of the vote in 2024, Spencer’s victory makes him the...

An Arkansas father is facing a potential murder charge after reportedly shooting and killing a man in his 60s who was found in a vehicle with his missing 14-year-old daughter. According to a release from the Lonoke County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded Oct. 8 to reports of a missing juvenile in the county, which is located about 75 miles north of Hot Springs. While en route, they learned the missing 14-year-old girl’s father, Aaron Spencer, had found his daughter in a vehicle with Michael Fosler, a man in his 60s, the sheriff’s office told USA Today. READ MORE: Body parts...