Man guilty in Crystal Rogers murder case asks for new trial or acquittal
Attorneys for Steven Lawson, one of three men charged in Crystal Rogers’ disappearance and presumed death, have asked a judge for a new trial or to acquit him of the charges altogether, according to court documents.
Lawson, 54, of Chaplin, was found guilty last week of conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence. Before the trial, Lawson’s attorney, Darren Wolff, asked for a delay in the case, saying he was not properly prepared to defend his client due to a lack of time and resources.
Nelson County Circuit Judge Charles Simms III denied the request, and the trial carried on as scheduled.
Now, less than one week after the guilty verdict, Wolff has filed a motion requesting a new trial or for Lawson to be acquitted of the charges without a new trial.
Prosecutor Shane Young did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.
Simms will now consider Wolff’s motion and decide whether or not to grant Lawson a new trial.
Lawson was the first of three defendants to be tried in the case. The other two defendants, Rogers’ former boyfriend, Brooks Houck, and Lawson’s son, Joseph Lawson, are scheduled for a joint trial in late June.
Houck is charged with murder and tampering with evidence, while Joseph Lawson is charged with conspiracy to commit murder and complicity to tampering with evidence.
Prosecutors say Steven Lawson conspired with Houck to kill Rogers, and then tampered with physical evidence by moving the seat of Rogers’ car when it was moved to Bluegrass Parkway.
Rogers, 35, of Bardstown, went missing in July 2015. Her body has never been found, but she is presumed dead.
Lawyer’s claims of unfair trial
One of Wolff’s arguments was that he did not have enough time to prepare for the trial. Wolff and co-counsel Zach Buckler were hired as Lawson’s attorneys in August 2024, only nine months before the trial.
Wolff wrote in the motion that there are over 400,000 documents and hundreds, if not thousands, of hours of video and audio recordings in the case, plus even more evidence discovered in 2024 and 2025. Wolff highlighted that prosecutors had been able to review the evidence since the indictments were returned in 2023, or even earlier, since the investigation began in 2015.
“This provided an unfair, lopsided means of preparation in favor of the commonwealth, which the defendant properly brought to the court’s attention,” Wolff said in the motion.
Wolff also highlighted problems with the trial’s scheduling and the urgency to have the trial wrapped up by the end of one week. Wolff said the jury deliberated for about three hours before delivering the verdict, which was not enough time given the circumstances.
“This length of time led to a jury who was obviously ready to go home and failed to deliberate the nuances of the case,” Wolff wrote. “There is no conceivable way this jury reviewed the evidence, considered the instructions, and thoughtfully deliberated this matter in the time it took to reach the verdict.”
Wolff also alleged that members of the gallery may have persuaded the jury with their attire. Before the trial, Simms issued an order outlining appropriate attire for the gallery members, saying attendees must wear proper decorum that does not influence the jury.
But Wolff noted that several members of Rogers’ family wore pink, the color of “Team Crystal.”
Wolff also alleged the court did not provide fair instructions to the jury before their deliberations. Wolff wrote in the motion that his jury instructions were rejected and the court used instructions not approved by Kentucky law.
Steven Lawson’s right to test evidence was violated when Simms previously denied a motion to test hairs found in Rogers’ car, Wolff said. The prosecution originally wanted to test the hairs for DNA, but later withdrew the motion after determining the hairs did not belong to any of the three defendants.
Steven Lawson requested that the hairs be tested anyway, but Simms ruled that determining who the hairs belonged to wouldn’t make a difference in the case and denied Steven Lawson’s request.
This story was originally published June 5, 2025 at 3:10 PM.
