Judge rejects immunity deal for Steve Lawson, ruling he lied to investigators in Crystal Rogers case

LOUISVILLE, Ky., (WDRB) -- The judge in the Crystal Rogers murder case denied immunity for one of the men charged in her 2015 disappearance on Wednesday, ruling he was untruthful with investigators.

Defense attorney Ted Lavit had asked that the charges against Steve Lawson in the Rogers murder case be dismissed — or at least that his statements be thrown out — because he was promised immunity for talking with investigators.

But Nelson County Judge Charles Simms ruled the oral agreement between prosecutors and Lawson stipulated he had to be 100% honest with investigators.

Prosecutors argued Lawson lied repeatedly to minimize his own part in the case, and Simms found that recordings of Lawson's interviews with investigators "clearly establish that Lawson provided wildly inconsistent information."

For example, Simms noted that Lawson provided contradictory information about the placement of Rogers' vehicle around the time she disappeared, where his wife Tammy was at the time and whether Lawson worked for Houck.

Simms included information from prosecutors alleging Lawson and Houck deleted 24 phone calls to each other from May and June 2015.

In addition, Simms included transcripts of Lawson admitting to a detective that he had lied to investigators and said in a jail phone call last year that "when I lied it f***** my deal up."

In a June 13 hearing, Lavit said Lawson "did not lie purposely" and that investigators pushed him to tell them what they wanted to hear.

Also, Lavit said Lawson's statements led to the indictment of his son, Joseph Lawson, and Rogers' former boyfriend, Brooks Houck.

"When they say he lied and therefore he broke the agreement, that's not how the courts have looked at it," Lavit said. "He provided info that led to the arrests."

But Simms ruled Lawson's "untruthfulness about matters that are clearly material" to the case violated the conditions of the agreement both sides had discussed repeatedly. Lavit did not provide any evidence that there was an immunity deal that didn't rely on Lawson being completely truthful, Simms ruled.

The judge also ruled that some of Lawson's statement to investigators as well as his testimony in front of the grand jury will be allowed to be used during his trial.

Rogers was last seen with her boyfriend, Houck, during the Fourth of July weekend in 2015.

Her car was left running on the side of Bluegrass Parkway with her purse still inside.

She's presumed dead, but her body was never found.

Brooks Houck will be in court Monday to discuss whether the cases should be tried together or not.

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