Brooks Houck's bond will stay at $10 million, Kentucky Court of Appeals rules

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Kentucky Court of Appeals ruled Brooks Houck's bond will stay at $10 million cash while he awaits trial for the murder of his former girlfriend, Crystal Rogers.

Houck has been in jail since his arrest in late September.

In a motion filed in Nelson Circuit Court in early October, attorney Brian Butler argued that the $10 million cash bond is "excessive, punitive, and serves no purpose other than to punish Mr. Houck by keeping him incarcerated while this is pending."

Butler noted that Houck has cooperated with investigators since his former girlfriend disappeared, agreed to interviews with police and submitted to a polygraph examination. The polygraph was deemed inconclusive but "did not show deception" when Houck denied wrongdoing relating to Rogers' disappearance, according to the motion.

Butler contended that the $10 million bail is contrary to the constitution and Kentucky legal precedent, arguing bond is not supposed to be used as a punishment but a way to protect people from those deemed dangerous and guarantee defendants show up for court.

"The current bond is unconstitutional, and, if it stands, can only send a clear message that our laws and years of precedent can be disregarded if the defendant is sufficiently vilified before ever being charged," Butler wrote in the motion.

The motion requested his bond be lowered to $500,000 with GPS monitoring if Houck was to be released.

Just days after that motion was filed, Nelson County Circuit Court Judge Charles Simms III ruled that Houck's bond would remain at $10 million cash.

In his order denying the bond reduction, Simms expressed concern for the safety of other people involved in the case if Houck was able to post a reduced bond and released on home incarceration.

"There is reason to believe that the Commonwealth may have one or more cooperating witnesses, and this Court is gravely concerned for the safety of any such witness(es) and any other individuals connected to this case," Simms wrote.

The day after that ruling, Houck's attorneys filed an appeal again in Nelson Circuit Court asking the state Court of Appeals to review the lower court's ruling, again citing an unusually high bond.

But the state appeals court disagreed. In its ruling issued Tuesday, the court cited several reasons, including agreeing with a lower court's opinion that Houck is a flight risk and could be a danger to potential witnesses.

Tuesday's ruling also cited accusations that Houck's family members recorded grand jury proceedings, and prosecutors' allegations that Houck's brother, Nick Houck, was involved in the death of Rogers' father, Tommy Ballard. The court also found Houck has the financial means to pay the bond.

Houck was identified as the primary suspect in the Rogers case days after she went missing July 2015. He now faces charges of murder and tampering with physical evidence after being indicted by a Nelson County grand jury Sept. 20.

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