Crystal Rogers update: Three defendants’ trials will be held in Bowling Green
NC GAZETTE / WBRT RADIO
STAFF REPORT
Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024 — The trials of the three co-defendants in the Crystal Rogers murder case will be located next year in Warren County.
Nelson Circuit Judge Charles Simms issued his decision Monday, ordering that the trials of Brooks Houck, Steven Lawson and his son, Joseph Lawson, will take place in Bowling Green.
Two proposed locations for the trials were under consideration — Hopkinsville in Christian County, and Bowling Green.
At Friday’s status hearing, Steven Lawson’s new defense attorneys reported that Lawson will not waive his right to keep his statements made during immunity negotiations out of court.
Lawson’s prior attorney had suggested that Lawson may waive the rights regarding those statements so his attorney could use transcripts of those negotiations to illustrate allegations that investigators led Lawson into making the statements they sought his to stay that would give them sufficient proof to indict co-defendant Brooks Houck.
Kentucky Rules of Evidence say that a defendant’s negotiations regarding immunity or similar deals are inadmissible in court unless the defendant waives his rights to keep them out of court.
Judge Simms has not ruled on the defendant’s requests for separate trials.
FORMER ATTORNEY ORDERED TO TURN OVER FILES. Lebanon attorney Ted Lavitt — who represented defendant Steven Lawson until Lawson fired him in August — has not yet complied with a request to turn over the files regarding Lawson’s case to his new attorneys, Darren C. Wolff or Zach Buckler.
During a status hearing Friday, Oct. 4, 2024, Circuit Judge Charles Simms III issued an order requiring Lavitt to turn over his case files to Wolff or Buckler within 14 days.
If Lavitt fails to comply with Simms’ order, he faces being charged with contempt of court.
At the August status hearing, prosecutors told Judge Simms they did not believe Lavitt was providing Lawson the type of representation he was guaranteed by the Constitution.
Simms has scheduled another status update at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 25, 2024.
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