The man convicted of Crystal Rogers’s murder will spend the rest of his life behind bars.
During a sentencing hearing at the Nelson County Justice Center Wednesday, Nelson Circuit Judge Charles Simms III sentenced Brooks Houck to a term of life in prison for the charge of Murder – Principal or Accomplice, and five years for the charge of Tampering with Physical Evidence, with the terms to be served concurrently.
Simms also sentenced Joseph Lawson to a term of 20 years in prison for the charge of Conspiracy to Commit Murder and five years for the charge of Tampering with Physical Evidence, with the terms to be served consecutively.
Those sentences are in line with the recommendations of the Warren County jury that convicted Houck and Lawson on July 8, with the exception of Houck’s concurrent terms. Simms noted that Kentucky law does not permit consecutive sentences when a life sentence is issued. Simms also noted that while several people who spoke during the hearing requested a life sentence without the possibility of parole, that is also not permitted under Kentucky law.
Several members of the Ballard family spoke during the hearing. Among the speakers was Rogers’s daughter Kyleigh Fenwick. She addressed Houck directly, stating “You never cared about anybody but yourself. You say you love Eli so much, but if you really loved him you wouldn’t have murdered his mother. You wouldn’t have took him from his siblings. I babysat him all the time, even when you were home. I watched him, and you just ripped him away from us, just like you did our mom.”
Rogers’s mother Sherry Ballard said Houck underestimated the love she and her husband had for their daughter. Ballard said: “For 10 years, I have suffered the pain of losing my daughter. Never once have I seen you shed one tear. Never once have I heard you say you worried about where she was or what might have happened to her. You sat there worried more about your family’s name than the woman you shared a child with, that you supposedly cared about.”
Prior to sentencing, Simms reminded Houck and Lawson of their rights to an appeal. Simms also granted Lawson’s motion to proceed in forma pauperis, which allows Lawson to continue to be represented by a public defender.
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