FRANKFORT, Ky. (July 30, 2026) – Attorney General Russell Coleman is asking Kentucky’s appellate courts to uphold the convictions of two men sentenced for their involvement in the disappearance and death of Crystal Rogers. Rogers, a Bardstown mother of five, was last seen alive on July 3, 2015.
A Kentucky judge and juries sentenced Steve Lawson, 55, to a 17-year sentence. Joey Lawson, 35, received a 25-year sentence. Separate juries convicted both men on charges of conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence.
In April, Joey Lawson filed an appeal with the Kentucky Supreme Court to have his conviction overturned. Steve Lawson appealed to the Kentucky Court of Appeals in May.
In response, Attorney General Coleman filed briefs arguing in support of the substantial proof presented against both men at their trials last year in Warren County. The brief in the Steve Lawson case details the key role Lawson played in facilitating her murder: “Steve didn’t just agree to help, he delivered.”
Joey Lawson, the brief reads was, “…a conspirator in Crystal’s death and disappearance, his guilt is Houck’s guilt.”
“The convictions of these men brought long-awaited accountability and justice to the Rogers and Ballard families, after nearly a decade of waiting,” said Attorney General Coleman. “The defendants can no longer evade justice.”
Hardin County Commonwealth’s Attorney Shane Young served as the special prosecutor in the trials. Kentucky Solicitor General Matt Kuhn, Principal Deputy Solicitor General Jack Heyburn, and Deputy Solicitor General Shawn Chapman filed the appellate briefs on behalf of the Commonwealth.
Read the brief in the Joseph Lawson case here. Read the brief in the Steve Lawson case here.
Brooks Houck, who was dating Rogers at the time of her disappearance, was convicted of murder. In January, he filed an appeal with the Kentucky Supreme Court to have his conviction overturned. Earlier this year, the Attorney General filed a brief urging the courts to uphold his life sentence.