AG: Conviction in Crystal Rogers case should stand
The Kentucky Supreme Court will now consider the appeal as the case continues through the post-conviction process.
FRANKFORT, Ky. — The Kentucky Attorney General’s Office is asking the state’s highest court to uphold the murder conviction of Brooks Houck in the Crystal Rogers case, pushing back against his appeal filed earlier this year.
Attorney General Russell Coleman filed a brief with the Kentucky Supreme Court supporting Houck’s conviction, arguing that the evidence presented at trial was substantial and supported the jury’s verdict.
Houck, 44, of Nelson County, was convicted last year in Warren County in connection with the 2015 disappearance and murder of Crystal Rogers.
Houck is one of three men convicted in the case. In his appeal filed in January, he is seeking to have his conviction overturned.
In the state’s filing, prosecutors described what they called a detailed and compelling timeline of events surrounding Rogers’ disappearance, arguing that evidence showed Houck’s involvement and his reaction in the hours after she was last seen.
“A loving mother of five doesn’t just walk away and vanish. But that is what Brooks Houck would have this Court believe happened. That’s because he killed Crystal,” the brief states.
The Attorney General’s Office also pointed to what it described as Houck’s “distinct indifference” during the first 36 hours of Rogers’ disappearance, saying the record presented at trial supports the conviction and should remain in place.
“For a decade, Crystal Rogers’ loved ones waited in agony for justice,” Coleman said in a statement. “Now, the man at the center of the crime that stole a mother from her children is once again trying to escape responsibility. We are fighting to finally deliver closure to the Rogers and Ballard families.”
Houck’s trial was prosecuted by Hardin County Commonwealth’s Attorney Shane Young, serving as special prosecutor. The appellate brief was filed on behalf of the Commonwealth by Kentucky Solicitor General Matt Kuhn and Deputy Solicitor General Shawn Chapman.
The Kentucky Supreme Court will now consider the appeal as the case continues through the post-conviction process.
