LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – Tuesday, 12 jurors in Bowling Green will deliberate to try to come to a conclusion on if Brooks Houck and Joseph Lawson are guilty or not in connection to the presumed murder of Crystal Rogers.
Both the Commonwealth and the defense wrapped up their closing arguments Monday, leaving the case in the hands of the jury.
Full prior coverage: Crystal Rogers Disappearance
1:37 p.m.
A verdict appears to be in. Join us live on WAVE now as we await the verdict in the trial of Brooks Houck and Joseph Lawson.
Brooks Houck was found guilty for both charges: murder, principal or accomplice, and tampering with evidence.
Joseph Lawson was found guilty for both charges as well: conspiracy to murder and tampering with evidence.
The jury deliberated for four hours.
After the verdict was announced, the family was incredibly emotional, trying to hold back outbursts. Some gasped and immediately began weeping, with others whispering, “Thank you, Lord.”
11:45 a.m.
The jury requested to replay Charlie Girdley’s testimony and to get a whiteboard.
Girdley had previously testified that Joseph Lawson told him “he said he would bury it with a skid steer and no one would ever find it” and that Steve Lawson told him Houck wanted to “get rid of his old lady.” Girdley also testified that he helped Houck at the family farm by pouring concrete.
The video that was played for the jury was Girdley’s timeline of events on July 3 and statements that were made to him from Joseph Lawson, Brooks Houck and Rosemary Houck about Rogers. The jury said they didn’t need to see anymore.
10:00 a.m.
The jury has received their instructions and have gone into deliberation. We are officially on verdict watch.
The final makeup of the jury is six men, six women. Three alternates, two men and one woman, have been dismissed.
How we got here:
Monday, Lawson’s attorney, Robert Boyd, described the case against his client as a witch hunt. He particularly tried to discredit witnesses like Charlie Girdley, a former employee of Houck’s, and Heather Snellen, the former girlfriend of Lawson’s father, Steven, by saying they’re two of the more untrustworthy witnesses he’s ever heard in court.
Houck’s attorney, Brian Butler, argued there’s an “overriding directive” to pin the Rogers murder on him, going so far as to call the case “garbage.” He highlighted the lack of physical evidence in the trial, saying that after 10 years of investigation, no body, murder weapon or crime scene has ever been found.
The Commonwealth had the last word Monday and prosecutor Shane Young used it to tell the jury to use their “God-given common sense,” a phrase he also used in his opening statements. He laid into the gaps of Houck’s inconsistent timeline of where he went and who he saw in the days after Rogers disappeared.
Young also described some of Houck’s behavior as sinister for a reason, such as recording grand jury statements, dodging family phone calls and seemingly not urgently looking for his girlfriend – all things prosecutors say are not right.
Jury deliberations are scheduled to start at 9:30 a.m.
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