Aaron and Heather Spencer’s nightmare began in the Spring of 2024 in Lonoke County, Arkansas, when they learned that a 67-year-old man had been sexually abusing their 13-year-old daughter.
At the time, the child had “spent more days than not helping care for her dying grandpa,” according to a Facebook post Heather wrote. The parents had decided to give her some free time. She was targeted by a man “old enough to be my father” who began grooming the daughter through text messages.
This man was 67-year-old Michael Fosler, a former Indiana police chief. In July, the parents found out that Fosler had allegedly raped their daughter multiple times. Lonoke County authorities arrested Fosler on September 4, 2024, according to court documents. He faced 43 felonies, including rape, grooming, sexual assault, sexual indecency with a child, internet stalking of a child, and possession of child pornography, CNN reported.
“We put our daughter into therapy and tried our best to manage her trauma while still caring for my dying father,” Heather wrote.
However, Circuit Judge Barbara Elmore released Fosler on a $50,000 bond, despite the gravity of the charges. She also issued a no-contact order forbidding him from having contact with the Spencer’s daughter or her immediate family. “Even though we anticipated his release, we thought the pending felony charges and a no contact order would be enough to keep him away from our child. We were wrong,” Heather wrote. Nevertheless, he continued communicating with her without her parents' knowledge.
On the night of October 8, 2024, the Spencers were awakened by their barking dog. They discovered that their daughter was missing. Heather recounted: “Immediately all the lights in the house were on, we were calling for her inside the house, then outside. I called 911 immediately as my husband left to go looking for her, with no direction in mind, only a prayer of finding her.”
Aaron managed to find Fosler’s truck about ten miles away from their home. He followed the truck, honking and flashing his lights in an effort to get Fosler to pull over. He eventually rammed the truck off the road, according to the affidavit. According to the sheriff’s report, the father “located the juvenile in a vehicle with Michael Fosler” and “a confrontation between the two adult males ensued.”
Aaron confronted Fosler and said he charged at him “with an object in his hand.” Aaron, an Army veteran, fired his pistol, striking the alleged kidnapper multiple times. Fosler died at the scene.
Spencer was charged with second-degree murder with a firearm enhancement and was taken into custody. Judge Elmore, who is also presiding over Aaron’s case, issued a gag order forbidding the family and public officials from publicly discussing the case. “We were no longer able to share our story and were forced to suffer the injustice of it all in silence,” Heather wrote.
There was no hearing held before the issuing of the gag order. Aaron requested a grand jury review for his case, but was denied because the prosecutors filed the charges by “felony information,” which Arkansas law allows.
However, the Arkansas Supreme Court intervened. In a unanimous ruling, the court vacated the gag order and rebuked Judge Elmore, saying that the gag order “constituted a plain, manifest, clear, and gross abuse of discretion,” according to court documents.
Heather pointed out that “the same judge who released this monster out into the community to continue his reign of terror on our child, placed us and seemingly the whole world under an unconstitutional gag order.”
Justice Nicholas Bronni added a more scathing criticism: “So, I'd invoke this court's superintending authority and reassign this matter to a new circuit court judge. Anything less suggests that what's happened so far is within the acceptable range of disagreement or administration, and it isn't.”
Aaron’s trial is set to begin in January 2026. Meanwhile, the father is not only telling his story, but has also decided to run for sheriff. “I’ve seen firsthand the failures in law enforcement and in our circuit court,” he said in a video. “And I refuse to stand by while others face these same failures.”
If convicted, Aaron could be facing up to 30 years in prison.
As the Spencers await Aaron’s trial, they are seeking support from the community. “Please continue to pray for our family and share our story. If this can happen to us in rural Arkansas, it can happen anywhere,” Heather wrote.
The family has set up a GiveSendGo page to help with their legal expenses.