Nelson County Man Charged in Connection to Crystal Rogers’ Death

A Nelson County man, Joseph L. Lawson, 32, has been charged in connection to the death of Crystal Rogers. The FBI contacted Rogers’ relatives to inform them about Lawson’s arrest. He is facing charges of criminal conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence.

Crystal Rogers was last seen on July 3, 2015 at her then-boyfriend Brooks Houck’s home in Bardstown, Kentucky. She was reported missing two days later on July 5. That same day, her keys, cell phone, and purse were discovered inside her abandoned Chevrolet Impala on the Bluegrass Parkway. The car, with a flat tire, was believed to have been staged to mislead investigators. Rogers has not been seen or heard from since, and her body remains undiscovered.

The Nelson County Sheriff’s Office named Brooks Houck as a main suspect in the case, although he was never charged. Sixteen months after Rogers vanished, her father, Tommy Ballard, was fatally shot while hunting on his own property. Rogers’ mother, Sherry Ballard believes her husband’s murder was connected to their relentless search for their daughter.

In January of this year, Attorney General Daniel Cameron appointed a special prosecutor to investigate the deaths of Crystal Rogers and Tommy Ballard.