Court ruling favors Crystal Rogers’ ex-boyfriend, keeps Rogers’ mom from her grandson
Six months after Brooks Houck’s home was raided by federal agents as part of an investigation into Crystal Rogers’ disappearance and presumed death, a court ruled that Houck was right to keep his son away from Rogers’ family.
Sherry Ballard, Rogers’ mother, was denied visitation with her grandson, now 8, through a court order issued Saturday. Sole custody of the child remains with his father, Houck, who is a suspect in Rogers’ disappearance.
Ballard was permitted alternating weekend visitation through previous rulings, but the Kentucky Court of Appeals reversed those decisions in 2018, forcing the case back before a Nelson Circuit Court judge. Judge Stephen Hayden ruled against Ballard.
“There is clear and convincing evidence significant hostility exists between the Ballard family and Houck such that it poses a significant risk of emotional harm to” the child, Hayden wrote in his final ruling. He also wrote that it was “reasonable for Houck to believe denying visits is necessary to protect” his son.
Ballard has made it clear through Facebook posts that she believes Houck is responsible for her daughter’s disappearance and presumed death. She posted multiple times over the weekend expressing discontent with the judge’s decision.
“I have abided by every rule and have done everything they have asked me to do concerning my (grandson’s) visitation case,” Ballard wrote in a Facebook post Sunday. “I have waited for two long years for this so-called justice system to grant me visitation of my grandson.”
Ballard also said that Houck “was not mentioned” during any of her previous visits with her grandson.
Hayden wrote he was skeptical the Ballards would be able to refrain from making disparaging comments about the child’s father due to their “hostility” toward him.
In his final ruling, Hayden noted Houck is a suspect in Rogers’ disappearance but added that “no charges have been brought against him.”
Rogers’ disappearance has received significant national media coverage. The Oxygen Network ran a series on the investigation, and news stations and podcasts have covered the case extensively.
Hayden also wrote that “multiple witnesses for both sides” testified to Houck’s loving relationship with his son. He also wrote that the Ballard family had a “significant” role in the child’s life prior to Rogers’ disappearance.
Rogers had other children, all of whom currently live with Ballard, according to court records.
Ballard’s petition for visitation was filed in July 2015, the same month Rogers’ disappearance was reported. Rogers’ red Chevrolet Impala was found with a flat tire on the Bluegrass Parkway the same day she was reported missing, according to the FBI. Her keys, purse and phone were still inside the vehicle.
Houck was named a suspect in the case, but no arrests have been made yet. The Nelson County sheriff’s office was the lead agency on the case before the FBI took over in August 2020. More than 150 law enforcement officers descended upon Nelson County to execute search warrants relating to the case at that point, according to the FBI.
The FBI is also investigating the death of Ballard’s husband, Tommy Ballard, who died from a gunshot wound to the chest less than a year after his daughter’s death, police said.
The FBI launched a website for the “Crystal Rogers Task Force,” providing updates to the community and asking people to come forward with information. But no updates have been posted since Aug. 14.
This story was originally published February 22, 2021 at 9:53 AM.