2 men convicted in Crystal Rogers’ murder to be sentenced Wednesday

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Nearly a decade after Crystal Rogers disappeared, two men convicted in her murder are expected to learn their sentences Wednesday in Nelson County.

Brooks Houck, Rogers' boyfriend at the time of her disappearance, and Joseph Lawson were convicted in July after a jury trial in Bowling Green. The sentencing was delayed from last month because of Lawson's ongoing health issues from a 2021 motorcycle crash.

Houck, 43, was found guilty of murder and complicity to tampering with evidence. The jury recommended a sentence of life in prison plus five years.

He never spoke during the trial, but hours of recorded jail phone calls obtained through open records revealed his reaction after the guilty verdict.

"... The journey that my life has taken has completely turned around today, you understand that?" Houck said from jail after the verdict. "After a jury speaks like they did, you know, that's a permanent decision.

"There's a good chance that I'm going to die in here. Do you understand that?"

Lawson was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with evidence. The jury recommended a 25-year sentence. His attorneys said he maintains his innocence.

"I think everybody is looking forward to having some finality to this final sentencing, so the next chapter can proceed when an appeal will be filed and put in the hands of an appellate court," said Kevin Coleman, Lawson's attorney.

Robert Boyd, also representing Lawson, said his client's medical condition worsened during trial because sitting upright at trial for two and a half weeks wasn't good for his health.

"The problem with that is, is because of the paraplegia, he can't necessarily feel or know when something is going wrong until it kind of goes too far, and that's unfortunately what happened," Boyd said.

Lawson's attorneys also pushed back on testimony from his father, Steve Lawson, who told investigators his son helped move Rogers' car when it had a flat tire.

"I hate to say it because it really makes me feel uncomfortable," Boyd said. "I believe that that was a false confession by Steve Lawson. It was the product of very coercive interview tactics over the period of months, probably 40 hours or so in 2023 by KSP."

Prosecutor Shane Young also called Houck's mother and brother, Rosemary and Nick Houck, unindicted co-conspirators. They haven't been charged.

"Ultimately, I've never been involved in a case that had unindicted co-conspirators," Boyd said. "I don't believe it had any actual effect on Joey's trial."

"The evidence didn't really show Joey being involved with a co conspiracy with Rosemary Houck and Nick Houck," Coleman added.

Rogers, a 35-year-old mother of five, was last seen alive during the Fourth of July weekend in 2015 with Houck. Her car was later found abandoned along the Bluegrass Parkway. Her body has never been recovered.

Boyd said unanswered questions remain in the case.

"The biggest takeaway is Crystal Rogers' cellphone is in that car, and there's a fingerprint on there that doesn't belong to Joey Lawson, doesn't belong to Steve Lawson, doesn't belong to Brooks Houck or anybody related to them," he said. "Additionally, it doesn't belong to Crystal or anybody in her family. It is a complete 100% unknown fingerprint. And we've just convicted three people of this crime."

Houck can be heard in jail phone calls reflecting on his future.

"They've got me in here laying down in the little stainless steel bunk bed, locked up in a concrete box ..." he said. "And I'm trying to hire lawyers that can help me fight my way out of this. I have to wait to go through this appeals process."

Steve Lawson has already been sentenced to 17 years in prison for his role in Rogers' death. Houck and Joseph Lawson are scheduled to be sentenced at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday in Nelson County.

WDRB will be in the courtroom with updates on air, online and on social media.

Convicted in Crystal Rogers' murder, Brooks Houck still tries to run his business from jail

Inside Brooks Houck's jail phone calls: From hope to desperation after murder conviction

Brooks Houck owns 73 properties worth $13 million in Nelson County, records show