A judge on Tuesday denied motions to acquit two men charged in the disappearance and presumed murder of a young Bardstown mother. The ruling means the case against Brooks Houck and Joseph Lawson will proceed before a Warren County jury.
After the prosecution rested its case, defense attorneys for Houck and Lawson made a motion for a directed verdict, which essentially asks the judge to issue a verdict of acquittal rather than let the case go to the jury for deliberations.
The defense argued the commonwealth didn’t prove Crystal Rogers was murdered in a trial largely based on circumstantial evidence.
"To allow this to go to the jury would be contrary to 80 years of Kentucky law," suggested Houck's attorney, Brian Butler.
Butler cited a prior legal precedent requiring a body, a crime scene, or confession in order to convict on murder.
Special Prosecutor Shane Young countered, "We have a witness and that man is seated right there," pointing to Houck at the defense table.
Nelson Circuit Judge Charles Simms III denied the motions, saying there was “certainly proof of death in this case” based on testimony from the past five days.
Key testimony on Tuesday came from Texas-based K-9 handler Benjamin Terry, who appeared in a videotaped deposition. He recalled meeting Jefferson County Sheriff's Office Detective Jamie Brooks at a National Rifle Association show in Louisville in 2016. Terry said Brooks asked for his help on the Rogers investigation, and the following day, he took Terry to an impound lot.
Without being told what he was looking for, Terry said he turned his cadaver dog, Ranger, loose on the lot that contained at least ten other vehicles. The K-9 zeroed in on a white Buick Le Sabre and sat down near the trunk of the vehicle. Terry told the jury the dog was trained to sit at the location where it detected human remains.
Prosecutor Jim Lesousky asked Terry if the K-9 could still pick up the scent of human remains years later.
"This scent can last hundreds of years," Terry said.
The Buick belonged to the grandmother of Brooks Houck. Hunters reported seeing the vehicle at the Houck family farm the night of Rogers’ disappearance.
The family later sold the car at a Louisville dealership before it was impounded as part of the investigation. A previous witness said a human hair was found in the trunk with characteristics similar to Rogers’ hair.
Defense attorney Steve Schroering, who represents Houck, tried to discredit Terry's testimony, pointing out he worked for Lone Star Search & Rescue, a part-time volunteer ministry of his church.
The defense countered by highlighting that this was the first time Terry had testified in a criminal case, and that he had lost all certification documents for the K-9 during a move. Schroering also questioned why there was no video or pictures of the dog alerting to the back of the Buick.
More testimony on Tuesday came from Barbara Coulter, the grandmother of Joseph Lawson. She recalled that he came to her house in 2022 while high on drugs and said "Grandma, there's something I need to tell you."
Colter testified that Lawson told her his father, Steve Lawson, killed Rogers, though he didn't provide any details. Judge Simms told the jury that testimony could only be used against Joseph Lawson, not Brooks Houck. Colter further testified that father and son had a "toxic" relationship.
Opening statements begin Wednesday morning on behalf of Lawson, who is charged with conspiracy to commit murder and evidence tampering, the same charges his father was convicted on in late May.
The defense will also begin calling witnesses Wednesday for Houck, the live-in boyfriend of Rogers who fathered a child with her, and who is charged with murder and tampering with physical evidence.
Rogers, a mother of five, was last seen over the Fourth of July weekend in 2015. Previous testimony revealed a motive for her presumed murder, including Rogers' strained relationship with Houck, as well as his mother.
