An Arkansas father accused of murder says he’s running for sheriff while awaiting trial

An Arkansas father accused of killing his daughter’s alleged abuser is running for sheriff while awaiting his murder trial, saying he has seen the failures of law enforcement in his rural county.

Aaron Spencer, an Army veteran and farmer, announced his candidacy this month in Lonoke County a year after authorities say he shot and killed a man who had been out on bond after being charged with numerous sexual offenses against his underage daughter.

Spencer has pleaded not guilty and is out on bond while awaiting a trial set for early next year. His attorneys do not deny that their client shot and killed Michael Fosler, 67, but maintain he acted within the law to protect his child from a predator.

The primary election in Arkansas is next March, with the general election in November 2026. He is not yet officially on the ballot since candidate filings begin next month.

“Many of you know my story,” Spencer said in a video announcing his candidacy. “I’m the father who acted to protect his daughter when the system failed. And through my own fight for justice, I have seen firsthand the failures in law enforcement and in our circuit court, and I refuse to stand by while others face these same failures.”

He says he will run as a Republican to replace Lonoke County’s Republican Sheriff John Staley, whose department arrested Spencer in October 2024. Staley, a three-term incumbent, did not return a message seeking comment.

Jennifer Hopper, who chairs the Lonoke County Republican Committee, said most people in the county of 76,000 residents don’t seem to have a problem with Spencer’s candidacy.

“Not from what I’ve seen,” Hopper said, adding that many people believe the shooting was justified.

On the night of the shooting in October 2024, Spencer woke up to find the girl missing from her bedroom, left in his truck searching for her and found her in the passenger seat of a vehicle Fosler was driving, court documents show. Spencer forced Fosler’s truck off the highway and, after an altercation, called 911 to report he had shot the man, records show.

Spencer’s attorneys, Erin Cassinelli and Michael Kaiser, maintain their client acted within the law to protect his child from a predator.

“We believe it is clear that Aaron was justified under Arkansas law in taking action to protect his daughter and himself, and we believe that will be apparent at trial,” Cassinelli wrote in an email to The Associated Press.

Cassinelli added that she’s not concerned about Spencer’s decision to run for sheriff negatively affecting his trial.

“I am thrilled that the citizens of Lonoke County will have a choice in this election,” she said.

Lonoke County Prosecuting Attorney Chuck Graham did not return messages Thursday seeking comment on the case.

Spencer lives outside the city of Cabot, Arkansas, which is about 26 miles (42 kilometers) northeast of Little Rock.