The initial sentencing for one of the three men involved in the 2015 murder of Kentucky resident Crystal Rogers occurred on Wednesday, resulting in a 17-year prison term.
Steve Lawson was found guilty in May for conspiring to commit murder and tampering with evidence. The sentence handed down by Nelson County Circuit Court Judge Charles Simms III adhered to the jury’s suggestion, according to a WDRB report.
Simms denied Lawson’s motion for a new trial and said he has 30 days to appeal his conviction to the state Court of Appeals.
Two of Rogers’ family members — her sister and an uncle — gave victim impact statements before the sentencing.
Brooke Bryan, Rogers’ sister, expressed her anguish by saying, “You could have prevented this. You could have saved her, and none of us would be here today. Your silence cost Crystal her life.”
Rogers’ uncle, Mike Ballard, conveyed to Lawson his intention to “attend your parole hearing and strive to prevent your release.” He further urged Lawson to inform Rogers’ family about the whereabouts of her body.
“If you do one right thing in your life, this is the thing to do,” Mike Ballard said. “Let them know where their mom is.”
Ahead of her disappearance after spending a weekend with her then-boyfriend, affluent businessman Brooks Houck, during the July 4 holiday in 2015, Rogers was last seen alive. Her vehicle was discovered running on the Bluegrass Parkway with her belongings still inside. Eventually, Lawson, his son Joseph Lawson, and Houck were all apprehended.
During Steve Lawson’s trial in May, the jury reached a rapid guilty verdict in merely two hours. The following month, Joseph Lawson was also convicted on identical charges, while Houck was adjudged guilty of murder and complicity in tampering with evidence.
The younger Lawson and Houck will be sentenced later this month. The jury recommended life plus five years for Houck and 25 years for Lawson.
Late last month, Simms ordered Houck to stop trying to sell his property and other assets ahead of an evidentiary hearing in a wrongful death lawsuit filed against him by Rogers’ children and her mother, Sherry Ballard.
