Brooks Houck’s lawyer claims police missteps in Crystal Rogers murder case

The lawyer for Brooks Houck, the man accused of killing Bardstown woman Crystal Rogers a decade ago, argued Wednesday that prosecutors’ case was based on assumptions, guesses and theories.

Defense attorney Steve Schroering said since the day Rogers went missing, a perfect storm of pressure on investigators, coupled with extreme media attention, caused police to use irresponsible tactics to solve the case.

Houck, now 43, was Rogers’ boyfriend at the time of her July 2015 disappearance. He faces charges of complicity to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence. Joseph Lawson, 34, faces charges of conspiracy to commit murder and conspiracy to tamper with physical evidence.

The body of Rogers, 35, has never been found.

Wednesday, the second day of Houck and Lawson’s joint trial, marked the first time the public heard Houck’s defense.

Since October 2015, police focused on Houck as the culprit in Rogers’ death. In the years between then and Houck’s eventual arrest in October 2023, police searched several of Houck’s properties, including his family’s farm, home and properties on which his construction company had worked.

It was that pressure that caused detectives to home in on Houck after Rogers went missing, Schroering said during opening statements Wednesday morning.

“Law enforcement began looking at (Houck) for an investigation they couldn’t figure out,” he said. “This is a dangerous case to our system of justice.”

But prosecutors argued that not only were Houck and Lawson involved, but that the entire Houck family was a part of a conspiracy to kill Rogers and cover up her disappearance.

Law enforcement pressured witnesses, Houck’s lawyer said

Schroering gave a birds-eye-view of the decade-long investigation that included dozens of agencies.

Still, Schroering stressed there was no physical evidence: no crime scene, no murder weapon, no body and no evidence of what could have caused Rogers’ death.

Since the beginning, Houck has maintained his innocence and complied with investigators for more than 70 search warrants issued by the Nelson County Sheriff’s Office alone.

“If you look from a sinister view, you will get a sinister answer,” he told jurors Wednesday.

The pressure caused police and investigators to deploy tactics such as loose threats to witnesses, which discredited their statements, Schroering said.

Heather Smeller, the former girlfriend of Steven Lawson — Joseph Lawson’s father, who was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder during a separate trial last month — is expected to testify this week.

Defense lawyers said when Smeller spoke with Kentucky State Police detectives, they told her, “Your life is pretty good. Tell us what we want to know and it will stay that way.”

Smeller eventually gave statements to police, but later sent a letter recanting her statements, and said she felt pressured by detectives.

A family conspiracy

Prosecutor Jim Lesousky outlined a timeline Tuesday for how he says Houck and Lawson killed Rogers and attempted to cover up her death.

But he also argued that Houck’s mother, brother and sister, none of whom have been charged in Rogers’ disappearance, were involved, too.

Throughout the evening of July 3, 2015, they all participated in Rogers’ death, he said. It’s not the first time the family has been accused of having a role in Rogers’ disappearance, but Leousky did not elaborate on the role he said each person played.

Instead, he implored the jury to use “common sense” for evidence they admitted was largely circumstantial.

Leousky said Brooks’ mother Rosemary Houck spoke to a man days before Rogers’ disappearance about how she could hire someone to “get rid” of Rogers.

Little was heard about Joseph Lawson during openings. There was an occasional mention of his alleged involvement in moving Rogers’ car following her disappearance.

Lawson’s attorney, Kevin Coleman, decided to delay their opening statements until after the prosecutors’ case was presented.

The trial began Tuesday with jury selection, and is expected to last 10 days, until July 7 or 8. Jurors could hear testimony from more than 50 people.

This story was originally published June 25, 2025 at 3:22 PM.

Taylor Six

Lexington Herald-Leader

Taylor Six is the criminal justice reporter at the Herald-Leader. She was born and raised in Lexington attending Lafayette High School. She graduated from Eastern Kentucky University in 2018 with a degree in journalism. She previously worked as the government reporter for the Richmond Register.