Aisha Fraser was a sixth-grade teacher in Shaker Heights, Ohio, who was stabbed to death on November 17, 2018, by her ex-husband, former Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Lance Mason, in front of their two young daughters. She was 45. Four years earlier, Mason had beaten her so badly she needed facial reconstruction surgery, pleaded to reduced charges, and served nine months in prison. Her murder prompted Ohio legislators to introduce a package of domestic violence reforms known as Aisha’s Law.1Shakerite. Aisha Fraser Killed2Ideastream. Former Judge Lance Mason Pleads Guilty to Killing Ex-Wife Aisha Fraser
Who She Was
Fraser graduated from Shaker Heights High School in 1991, attended Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, and later earned an MBA and a master’s in education from Ursuline College. She worked in business before moving into teaching. In 2002 she joined Woodbury Elementary School in the Shaker Heights City School District, where she taught sixth-grade history and math.1Shakerite. Aisha Fraser Killed
Colleagues and parents described her as an advocate for families of children with special needs. She stayed late to help struggling students and opened her classroom at lunchtime. She represented her peers in the Shaker Heights Teachers’ Association and belonged to Delta Sigma Theta sorority. She had two daughters, Audrey and Ava, who were 11 and 8 when she was killed.1Shakerite. Aisha Fraser Killed
The 2014 Attack
On August 2, 2014, Mason attacked Fraser while their children sat in the backseat of a car. According to police reports, he punched her roughly 20 times, slammed her head into the dashboard five times, and bit her. She needed facial reconstruction surgery and filed for divorce two days later.3The Hill. Marcia Fudge Once Wrote Letter of Support for Man Now Accused of Murder2Ideastream. Former Judge Lance Mason Pleads Guilty to Killing Ex-Wife Aisha Fraser
Mason was then a sitting Cuyahoga County Common Pleas judge, appointed to the bench in August 2008 by Governor Ted Strickland after serving in the Ohio House and Ohio Senate.4Cleveland.com. Former Judge Lance Mason’s Rise and Fall He was initially indicted on eight charges, including felonious assault, kidnapping, and child endangerment. Through a plea deal, those were reduced to one count of attempted felonious assault and one count of domestic violence.5Cleveland 19. Congresswoman Marcia Fudge Releases Statement on Lance Mason
On September 16, 2015, visiting Judge Patricia Cosgrove sentenced him to two years in prison after reviewing photos of Fraser’s injuries. “There is not one person in this courtroom that doesn’t carry a burden with them,” she said. “But you don’t take it out on another human being.”6Cleveland.com. Former Common Pleas Judge Lance Mason Sentenced to Two Years Mason served nine months. His release conditions included five years of probation, anger management classes, and a prohibition on any contact with Fraser.2Ideastream. Former Judge Lance Mason Pleads Guilty to Killing Ex-Wife Aisha Fraser
Support Letters and a City Job
Before sentencing, dozens of prominent Cleveland figures wrote letters on Mason’s behalf, including four sitting judges and U.S. Rep. Marcia Fudge, who had known him for nearly three decades. Fudge called Mason “a good man who made a very bad mistake” who “accepts full responsibility for his actions and has assured me that something like this will never happen again.”7Slate. Marcia Fudge Letter on Lance Mason Fraser’s own attorney submitted a letter stating that long-term incarceration was “inconsistent with the goals which Ms. Mason desires for her husband, herself, and their children.”8Fox 8. Rep. Fudge Wrote Letter on Behalf of Lance Mason After Domestic Violence Conviction Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty, Mason’s former colleague, called the conviction a “sad day” and said he was “confident he will leave prison rehabilitated.”9Cleveland 19. Former Judge Lance Mason Sentenced to Two Years in Domestic Violence Case
The Ohio Board of Professional Conduct disagreed. In proceedings that led to Mason’s indefinite suspension from practicing law in December 2017, the Board recommended permanent disbarment, citing “misgivings about his dubious explanation for the behavior, failure to provide assurances that the behavior will not occur again, and less than heartfelt engagement in the redemptive process.” The Ohio Supreme Court rejected disbarment but imposed the indefinite suspension.10vLex. Ohio State Bar Ass’n v. Mason
About a year after his release, Mason was hired by the City of Cleveland as a minority business development administrator at a salary of roughly $45,000 to $47,800.11News 5 Cleveland. Cleveland Mayor Defends Hiring of Judge Lance Mason Mayor Frank Jackson later defended the decision, saying Mason came in through a “second chance for felons program” and that what happened “could not have been foreseen.” He acknowledged supporting Mason’s past election campaigns but said they were not friends.12Cleveland 19. Cleveland Mayor Defends Hiring Convicted Felon Lance Mason Mason was fired after his arrest.
The Murder
On the morning of Saturday, November 17, 2018, Fraser drove to a home she owned on Chagrin Boulevard in Shaker Heights to drop off one of their daughters for a visit with Mason. A protection order was in place prohibiting Mason from any contact with her.13Ideastream. Ex-Judge Lance Mason Charged With Murder in Fatal Stabbing of Aisha Fraser
Mason attacked Fraser in the driveway with two kitchen knives, stabbing her 59 times. Twelve of the wounds were on her hands from trying to defend herself. The attack ended with her throat being sliced three times. Both daughters were present. One ran inside to alert Mason’s sister, Lynn Mason, who called 911 and reported hearing Fraser screaming. Mason told his children, “I’m so sorry,” and fled in Fraser’s Audi SUV.14Cleveland.com. Disgraced Former Judge Lance Mason Has Chance at Parole After Admitting to Ex-Wife’s Murder As Shaker Heights police established a perimeter, he drove the SUV into a police cruiser, pinning Officer Adam Flynt and causing severe leg and rib injuries. Flynt was expected to recover. Mason was taken into custody.15Ideastream. Ex-Judge Lance Mason Charged, Accused of Ramming Officer Fleeing Homicide Scene
Fraser’s daughters were placed with their godmother, Fraser’s best friend, consistent with Fraser’s own wishes. The godmother was preparing to adopt both girls.16News 5 Cleveland. Aisha Fraser Killing Details
Prosecution and Sentence
Because of Mason’s history on the Cuyahoga County bench, all local judges recused themselves, and retired Stark County Common Pleas Judge John G. Haas was assigned to the case.17Courthouse News Service. Former Ohio Judge Changes Plea, Admits to Killing Ex-Wife A grand jury indicted Mason on six felony counts: aggravated murder, murder, two counts of felonious assault (one against a peace officer), grand theft, and violating a protection order.18Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office. Lance Mason Sentence Press Release
On August 20, 2019, Mason pleaded guilty to all charges.17Courthouse News Service. Former Ohio Judge Changes Plea, Admits to Killing Ex-Wife On September 12, 2019, Judge Haas sentenced him to life in prison with eligibility for parole after 35 years: life for aggravated murder, five years for assaulting a peace officer, 24 months for violating the protection order, and 12 months for grand theft, with the additional terms running concurrently.19Ideastream. Former Judge Lance Mason Sentenced to Life in Prison
Aisha’s Law
In February 2019, State Rep. Janine Boyd of Cleveland Heights introduced Aisha’s Law as House Bill 3 in the 133rd General Assembly. Boyd said she “promised Aisha’s family, friends, colleagues and students that I would leave no stone unturned in this legislation.”20Ohio House of Representatives. Rep. Boyd Testifies on Aisha’s Law
The bill would require law enforcement agencies to adopt evidence-based lethality assessment tools to identify high-risk domestic violence cases, mandate biennial officer training on domestic violence response, create temporary emergency protection orders available outside normal court hours, expand the legal definition of domestic violence to include strangulation, and add domestic violence circumstances to the offense of aggravated murder. It also allocates $150,000 for domestic violence training at the Police Officers’ Training Academy.21Ohio House of Representatives. Aisha’s Law Legislation Overwhelmingly Passes Ohio House
The Ohio House passed the bill on May 20, 2020, and again on October 27, 2021, with broad bipartisan support each time. It stalled in the Ohio Senate on both occasions.21Ohio House of Representatives. Aisha’s Law Legislation Overwhelmingly Passes Ohio House22Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Section 2903.18 – Strangulation or Suffocation23Ohio Capital Journal. Mother of Aisha Fraser Calls for Domestic Violence Protections in Rare Interview
The full bill was introduced for a third time as House Bill 486 in April 2024.24StateNews.org. Anti-Domestic Violence Bill Introduced in Ohio Legislature for the Third Time That same month, Fraser’s mother, Millicent Fraser, gave her first public interview since her daughter’s murder and urged the Senate to act. “They really need to make a stiffer law,” she said. “It doesn’t stop, it just gets worse.” Of the system that was supposed to protect her daughter, she said simply: “The system absolutely failed her.”23Ohio Capital Journal. Mother of Aisha Fraser Calls for Domestic Violence Protections in Rare Interview
Nancy Neylon of the Ohio Domestic Violence Network, responding to the characterizations of Mason’s 2014 beating as an uncharacteristic mistake, said domestic violence is “never an isolated incident” but part of a “pattern of power and control tactics.”25Ideastream. Northeast Ohio Politicians, Attorneys Supported Lance Mason After 2014 Abuse