LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Joseph Lawson, the 32-year-old Nelson County man who, along with Brooks Houck, has been arrested in the death of Crystal Rogers, is no stranger to the legal system, especially as it relates to allegations of violence and threats against women.
In all, five women have accused Lawson of assaulting or threatening them since 2009, including two with whom he shares children.
In 2020, for instance, he was accused of choking and hitting a woman in Marion County and was eventually convicted of misdemeanor assault and facilitation to strangulation. He was sentenced to 90 days in jail, which was suspended. He was put on two years of probation.
"He told me he was going to kill me that evening at my home," the woman told police. "He continued to call saying he was going to shoot me and for me to be ready to die."
Court records and interviews shed light on Lawson's past as he is thrust into the spotlight in the high-profile case of Rogers' disappearance alongside Houck, who was named investigators' prime suspect in 2015.
What emerges is a portrait of someone who has cycled in and out of local jails and spent less than a year in prison and who is now confined to a wheelchair.
In 2015, shortly before Rogers disappeared, Lawson allegedly told a woman she was going to be his "next victim."
The five women have accused him of domestic violence from 2009-20. Some of those cases were later dropped, with one woman telling a judge in July 2020 that she no longer wanted to press charges because the two planned to marry. The woman said Lawson had made "huge strides in controlling his anger" and was taking online college courses.
In addition, the woman wrote in a letter to the judge that Lawson was helping in a federal investigation. There is no public evidence showing Lawson has ever worked with federal authorities.
Several women mentioned Lawson carries knives and guns. He also has faced various other charges, including criminal mischief, burglary and possession of methamphetamine.
In all, Lawson has spent a little more than seven months in prison, according to the state Department of Corrections. He has been in and out of various county jails, typically not staying long.
After a plea agreement in April to criminal trespassing and criminal mischief, a Washington County judge noted that "Mr. Lawson has been in front of me for sentencing multiple times" and asked he if wanted to ahead with the sentence or come back on another date.
"You can go ahead and sentence me if it's easier for you," Lawson responded, according to a video of the hearing. "It's not going to make a difference."
Lawson is a paraplegic in a wheelchair, having been injured in a motorcycle accident in 2021. Physically, he requires extensive treatment and is incontinent. He has "voiced suicidal thoughts" and been placed on watch while incarcerated, according to court records.
Even after his injury, one alleged assault victim wrote a judge saying that while authorities may believe Lawson was "no longer capable of harming anyone anymore," he has "become far more aggressive and needs to be stopped."
He has violated his probation numerous times for not showing up for meetings with his probation officer and not having a consistent address or, at times, even a working phone.
Attorney Kevin Coleman, who represents Lawson in the Rogers case, said he could not talk about his client's past. But he told WDRB News that being charged in such a high-profile case "can absolutely be overwhelming, the amount of attention. You're talking about somebody who probably didn't get much attention before this. Now it's quite overwhelming."
Coleman also said there have been "conclusions made by lots of people when they haven't seen all of the evidence.
"... Mr. Lawson is presumed innocent and I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure he has a fair trial."
'Life death'
Joseph Steven Lee Allen Lawson was born in 1991 and has rarely settled in one place for too long. He's been homeless at times, or slept in other people's houses or his vehicle, according to records reviewed by WDRB.
Lawson, who obtained his GED and has said his occupation is "self-employed construction," has a tattoo of a rebel flag on his shoulder, "Lawson" spelled out on his back and "life death" on his forearm, according to court records.
He has been in the hospital since his arrest in the Rogers case, making court appearances remotely. His physical problems have made it difficult for him to begin preparing his defense with his attorney.
Lawson has at least two children, according to court records.
In 2019, a woman who had a child with Lawson in 2014, asked that the child's last name be changed because he "wasn't around much," according to court records. He had another child with a woman in 2019.
Lawson has often been transient, staying short times at various people's homes, often without a phone, which has led to probation violations as he has been ordered in drug convictions and other cases to have a stable residence where a probation officer can reach him and reportedly "absconded."
Some of his charges include:
- In 2015, a Nelson County woman filed a domestic violence order against Lawson claiming he had hit and kicked her then chased her through town threatening to kill her and "everybody I loved." The woman said Lawson later called her 16 times "and told me I would be his next victim."
- A woman in Marion County who asked for a domestic violence order in both 2020 and 2021 claimed Lawson, in part, had destroyed her property and assaulted her. She alleged that he "beat her up" in July 2020. In a 911 call from July 2021, the woman accused Lawson of choking her. He was also accused of putting a gun to her head and telling her it was time to die. Lawson was convicted of assault and facilitation to strangulation and facilitation to unlawful imprisonment and sentenced to 90 days in jail, which was diverted to two years of probation. In addition, he served 60 days in jail, with credit for time served, for violating his parole in a previous drug possession conviction.
- In 2019, Lawson was arrested after a Nelson County woman filed an emergency protective order against him. Lawson wrote a letter to the judge saying the woman had assaulted him. The woman later asked for the order to be dismissed.
- In 2009, a Nelson County woman claimed Lawson and his cousin "drink and do very dangerous things," carried guns and knives and had called her and followed her home.
Lawson has no direct ties to Houck or Rogers, at least in publicly available documents reviewed by WDRB. But his father is Steve Lawson, who came up during a police interrogation of Houck days after Rogers disappeared. At the time, Houck told police that Steve Lawson was "somebody that works for me."
In the police interview, Houck calls Steve Lawson, who answers and says to Houck, "I just want to tell you I'm sorry about everything that's going on in your life, brother, I got you in my prayers."
"I appreciate you saying that, but I need your help while I got you on the phone," Houck replies. "Do you remember the night you called me really, really late, I forgot what you asked me.... can you, can you remember what you asked me or what you were after? I can't remember."
Steve Lawson says, "I sure can. I asked you for numbers for the house."
"Oh for a rental house," Houck says.
Houck owns several properties.
Rogers was last seen 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.
Lawson pleaded not guilty earlier this month in Nelson Circuit Court to charges of criminal conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence. His bond was set at $500,000 cash.
The indictment was the first in the case involving her murder.
Houck was charged Wednesday with complicity to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence in the Rogers case.
Lawson's indictment, which does not mention Rogers by name, says the crime was committed in Nelson County on July 3 and/or July 4, 2015, when Lawson "agreed to aid one or more persons in the planning or commission of the crime or an attempt or solicitation to commit the crime when he, and/or, a co-conspirator intentionally caused the death of another."
Lawson is not charged with Rogers' murder, but prosecutors instead charged him with the lesser offense of conspiracy, meaning they believe he was involved in some fashion with whoever killed Rogers.
The maximum sentence for the conspiracy charge is 10-20 years in prison.
In addition, the indictment charges Lawson with complicity to tampering with physical evidence when he "destroyed, mutilates, concealed, removed or alters physical evidence." The maximum penalty for that charge is one to five years in prison.
Lawson is scheduled to be back in court in front of Nelson Circuit Court Judge Charles Simms III on Oct. 26.
During his arraignment, Lawson was asked by the judge if he understood the murder conspiracy charge and replied, "kind of but yes, sir," according to a video of the proceedings.
Special Assistant to the Attorney General Shane Young, who is prosecuting the Rogers case, told the judge it was a "very complex case" and there was a lot of evidence to be turned over to the defense.
"It's obviously a lot more than other cases," Coleman told WDRB of the evidence. "But not every case has had this amount of resources put into the investigation."
Rogers' case has gone from the Nelson County Sheriff's Office to Kentucky State Police and ultimately the FBI in 2020 over the last eight years.
The FBI is also still investigating the death of Rogers' father, Tommy Ballard, who was shot and killed in 2016 while hunting on his own property more than a year after Rogers went missing.
Joseph Lawson, the 32-year-old Nelson County man who, along with Brooks Houck, has been arrested in the death of Crystal Rogers, is no stranger to the legal system.
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- Nelson County man arrested in connection to Crystal Rogers case paralyzed, bound to a wheelchair
- Nelson County man charged for alleged involvement in 2015 death of Crystal Rogers
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