Brooks Houck, the man convicted of killing mom-of-five Crystal Rogers in 2015, plans to appeal the conviction to the Kentucky Supreme Court.
According to WDRB, Houck’s attorneys say he should have been granted a new trial and the judge should have recused himself in their notice of appeal filed on Monday. They also said his trial should not have been coupled with that of co-defendant Joseph Lawson.
Both men were convicted in June — Lawson on charges of conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence and Houck on charges of murder and complicity tampering with physical evidence, as CrimeOnline reported. Lawson was sentenced to 25 years in prison, while Houck got life.
Lawson filed notice of appeal last week.
Rogers, 35, disappeared after spending time with wealthy businessman Houck, her then-boyfriend, over the July 4 weekend in 2015. Her car was later found on the Bluegrass Parkway, still running, with her personal items inside. Ultimately Steve Lawson, his son Joseph Lawson, and Houck were arrested.
Steve Lawson was tried separately from the other two in May and was also found guilty of conspiracy and tampering. He was sentenced to 17 years in prison.
Shortly after his conviction, Judge Charles SimmsIII ordered Houck to stop trying to sell his property and other assets ahead of an evidentiary hearing in a wrongful death lawsuit filed against him by Rogers’ children and her mother, Sherry Ballard.
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[Featured image: Crystal Rogers/handout. Inset: Brooks Houck/handout]
