BARDSTOWN, Ky. — New court documents filed in Nelson County Circuit Court on Thursday paint a picture of an alleged murder and cover-up after the disappearance of Crystal Rogers.
Brooks Houck, Rogers’ boyfriend, was the last person to see her alive over the Fourth of July weekend in 2015.
Eight years after she was reported missing, Houck was arrested and charged with her murder. Steve Lawson and Joseph Lawson, Houck’s employees, are also charged with conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence.
Prosecutor Shane Young filed the new court documents in response to the defendants’ request to try the cases separately in three individual trials.
RELATED: Attorneys, prosecutor in Crystal Rogers case agree to move trial 150 miles away from Bardstown
"The jury in this case deserves a complete picture of the conspiracy to murder Crystal Rogers and to cover up that murder by tampering with evidence," Prosecutor Shane Young wrote.
Young's response disputes Houck’s claim that prosecutors and detectives showed bias toward him throughout the investigation, claiming they worked with a "get Brooks" mentality.
"All of the information gathered has repeatedly led investigators back to Brooks Houck," he said.
Houck was considered the main suspect in Rogers' disappearance as early as July 8, 2015, according to court documents.
When then-lead detective on the case Jon Snow told him, "Currently you are the most likely suspect. You are her boyfriend and you were the last person to be with her." He also reiterated that Houck's lack of a timeline was a concern.
Young also accuses Houck and his legal team of quoting small snippets of over 20 hours of interviews to "put the best spin he can on witnesses who disclosed information about Houck's involvement in a crime."
"Yet by doing so, Houck leaves the court with an incomplete picture," Young argues. "In fact, Houck's entire response is premised upon doing just that, leaving jurors with an incomplete picture."
Young argues it is incredibly important for jurors to hear the cases together because the three men allegedly worked together to cover-up Rogers' disappearance.
"[The Lawsons] told investigators all about Houck's desire to get rid of Crystal, that Houck recruited his family for help, that Houck got [the Lawsons] to move her vehicle the night she disappeared, and that the explanation offered by [Steve Lawson] for the July 4, 2015 phone call between [him] and Houck was a lie,” Young said.
That 2015 phone was discussed in a police interview just days later.
Houck called Steve Lawson during the interview and asked him if he knew why Lawson had called him in the middle of the night on the night Rogers disappeared.
"I just want to tell you I'm sorry for everything you're going through, I've got you in my prayers," Lawson said after picking up the phone.
Houck responds with, "I certainly. This is a very difficult and trying time, but I appreciate you saying that."
Detective Snow would later call the conversation unusual. Lawson's attorney, Ted Lavit, called it "a set-up phone call."
"One was supposed to call the other," he said. "The ring came in and they spoke."
Now, prosecutors allege that conversation had a much more sinister message.
According to court documents, Steve Lawson told detectives he called Houck early on the morning of July 4, 2015 to tell Brooks "the job is done," referring to Rogers' car being moved. He told detectives his son Joseph had told him to make the call, after he picked him up on the side of the Bluegrass Parkway.
"[Steve Lawson] could not explain why when he was called by Houck on July 8, 2015, while Houck was in an interview with Det. Snow, he made up a story about the July 4 phone call," the court documents allege.
'Deeper than he is willing to admit'
Another set of court documents filed this week addresses Steve Lawson’s motion for his charges to be dismissed or his statement to be excluded on a claim of immunity.
In response to that motion, the prosecutor alleges Steve Lawson was denied immunity because of his "inability to tell a consistent narrative of what occurred on July 3, 2015 into July 4, 2015."
Prosecutors allege large periods of time were unaccounted for and his story about those periods of time consistently changed.
"It became apparent that Lawson had a larger involvement in Crystal Rogers' murder than he was willing to admit,” Young said.
According to court documents, Lawson admitted he lied to prosecutors during a phone call he made from jail in December of 2023, shortly after he was arrested.
The prosecutor alleges it is Lawson's responsibility to prove he is telling the truth that would have entitled him to immunity and that would be done in an evidentiary hearing. That hearing has not been requested as of today.
The next court date is set for June 13 at 9 a.m. in Nelson County.
The judge is expected to hear testimony on these arguments in person.
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