‘I’m thankful that he was found guilty’: Community satisfied, relieved following Lawson trial
Steven Lawson was found guilty and was recommended a sentence of 17 years.
BARDSTOWN, Ky. (WAVE) - After a Warren County jury found Steven Lawson guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence, Bardstown residents said they feel relief knowing Crystal Rogers’ family is getting some sense of justice.
For those who have lived in Bardstown for a long time, like Becky Distler, the days following Crystal Rogers’ disappearance are still a vividly clear memory.
“People started having signs pop up in their yards, prayers for Crystal in store windows and everything,” she said. “We would have prayer get-togethers. It was very intense as far as what has happened to her, where could she be, and try to support her family in all the prayers and things.”
Distler followed the Steven Lawson trial closely, hoping the Ballard family, whom she runs into frequently, would start to see justice.
“Every time I see Sherry (Rogers’ mother), I give her a hug and tell her that she’s still in my thoughts and my prayers and I will continue doing that,” she said.
However, even those who don’t know the family kept up with the trial, like Michael Garr.
“I just think something’s going on there,” he said. “I mean, it’s just too much evidence pointing to the whole family that something’s going on there. I mean, they need to get to the bottom of it.“
Garr said he is satisfied with knowing one of the three men charged in Rogers’ disappearance has been found guilty. The Bardstown neighbor said he prays this can be a first step towards closure for the Ballards.
“I feel sorry for them,” he said. “I know it’s going to be a hard thing to get over, but we send them our prayers.”
The family is also getting Distler’s prayers, who recognizes there is still a long way to go before Sherry Ballard can feel total relief.
“It (Lawson’s conviction) may give Sherry, her mother, some peace, but until they can find a body or remnants of a body, she’s not going to have total peace at all,” she said. “So I’m hoping that this next trial it will come out as to where anything of her is left.”
Two more co-defendants, Brooks Houck and Lawson’s son, Joseph, will stand trial in June. Joseph Lawson is charged with conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence. As for Houck, investigators say he was the last person to see Rogers alive. He is charged with complicity to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence.
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