An Arkansas state trooper, Michael Austin Kennedy, recently resigned from his position following revelations of deeply troubling text messages he sent to his wife. Kennedy, a father of two, left the Arkansas State Police more than a month after his wife, Alana, included his shocking, hate-filled texts in her divorce filings, which set off a major custody battle.
According to the New York Post, Alana filed the complaint seeking sole custody of their two children, though she did include visitation rights for their father. She expressed significant fear that Kennedy’s “white supremacist” beliefs would “poison the minds of the children” and “instill this same hatred” in them. It’s a really serious concern, and apparently, the children also “currently fear” Kennedy “due to his constant spewing of hate and irrational thoughts,” according to the complaint.
Kennedy allegedly spewed vile insults against all races and sexes, specifically excluding white men. He frequently used slurs like “n****” and “s***” in almost every message published in the complaint. This isn’t just a few bad messages, either. In several messages, the trooper plainly states his twisted beliefs, ranging from the banishment of Muslims from America to even repealing the 19th Amendment, which is the one that granted women the right to vote.
He tried to claim the graphic messages were old news
What’s even more concerning is how Kennedy allegedly abused his position as a state trooper. His wife accused him of sending her selfies where he posed with detained Hispanic people, bragging about his new “trophy.” Beyond that, he would text unprompted, nonsensical rants, often about wrong-way drivers he just assumed were intoxicated illegal immigrants, or he’d go on tirades against women and Black people.
He even frequently demeaned his wife for her goodwill, sneering that she didn’t “hate [immigrants] enough.” In one particularly disturbing exchange, Kennedy wrote, “You don’t f***** hate them enough. The s*** that clogged up [their son’s] toilet is worth more to me than any of them.” When Alana tried to warn him about traffic build-up on a local highway, Kennedy immediately claimed a Hispanic man was responsible. “But if we had a nation and a border, you would’ve been on time,” he wrote.
Another tense moment arose when Alana innocently asked Kennedy if he could bring their son a drink. Instead of a simple answer, Kennedy raged that he couldn’t because “n***** were n*****” in Little Rock. He continued, “In N*****, you have to pull guns on people driving down the road. It’s what you do all day long, every day. And then kids that actually have dads don’t get to see them because they have to go deal with it.”
The disturbing allegations of explicit bias within law enforcement recall another controversy where an officer was relieved of duty following a racist social media rant. Kennedy did reluctantly acknowledge his racist statements in his own filing on May 21. He tried to insist that the texts were “outdated” and came before he sought out therapy and spiritual guidance at their church.
The court filings contradict this defense, showing that the most recent messages dated back to January 2025. Alana has stipulated that Kennedy’s possibility for visitation is contingent upon his completion of a “parenting course in order to limit the hatred and prejudice that he has towards people.”
It’s also worth noting a peculiar detail, his father, Lt. Col. Mike Kennedy, currently serves as the deputy director of the Arizona State Police.
Published: Jun 3, 2026 10:15 pm