Judge dismisses case against Arkansas sheriff nominee who killed accused rapist after finding his daughter in man's car

We've got another update on the Arkansas man who shot his daughter's alleged rapist and then ran for sheriff.

And it's a good update.

Charges were dropped, the case dismissed, and Aaron Spencer is that much closer to becoming sheriff of Lonoke County.

Special Circuit Court Judge Ralph Wilson Jr. dismissed the case against Aaron Spencer on Thursday afternoon — just a few weeks before his trial on the second-degree murder charge was expected to begin — because a dash camera memory card that may have captured the shooting was lost by law enforcement.

The accused perp, 67-year-old Michael Fosler, was a former town cop for Hamlet, Indiana. Fosler was later accused of sexual abuse by a woman who lived in Hamlet in the early 1980s.

Some people have suggested the Arkansas police "lost" the footage to protect a fellow cop, but cops don't tend to look kindly on pedophiles who hide behind the badge!

'The court finds that conduct by law enforcement was so egregious that dismissal of this case is warranted,' Wilson wrote ...

Spencer said in a statement Thursday that the support from the community 'carried our family.'

'Neighbors here in Lonoke County, people from every part of Arkansas, and folks I've never met from around the world reached out, prayed for us, and refused to stay quiet,' Spencer said. 'When I couldn't speak for myself, you spoke for me. I'll never be able to thank you the way you deserve, but I'll spend the rest of my life trying to live up to it.'

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.'

KATV did an interview with Spencer in February where he argued that he had not acted as a vigilante, but did "what any good father would do."

Congratulations to Spencer and the people of Lonoke County.