Latest news with #NelsonCountySheriff'sOffice
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Steven Lawson trial: 4 takeaways from Day 2 of proceedings
Nearly 10 witnesses took the stand May 28 during the trial of Steven Lawson, the first of two trials to take place in connection with the disappearance of Crystal Rogers, the Bardstown mother who disappeared nearly a decade ago. Throughout the trial's second day, the prosecution, led by Special Prosecutor Shane Young, elicited testimony and evidence against Lawson, 54, who has been charged with conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence. The defense, meanwhile, attempted to frame much of the recollections testified by people with interpersonal relationships with Lawson as unreliable because of the near decade that has passed since Rogers' disappearance around July 3, 2015 — in some case questioning witnesses about their history with substance abuse. Here are four takeaways from the second day of proceedings. The day started with former Nelson County Sheriff's Office Detective Jon Snow, who led the investigation from 2015-2019 before the FBI took over in 2020, returning to the stand after giving testimony May 27. The defense questioned Snow about the evidence recovered from Rogers' car when police found it abandoned on the side of Bluegrass Parkway in Bardstown in 2015 with her keys, phone and purse inside. He told Zach Buckler, a defense attorney for Lawson, that Rogers' personal belongings were the only physical evidence of interest recovered from the car, but that the circumstances surrounding the findings were "amiss.' Buckler went on to press Snow about a hairbrush that a private investigator who had been hired to assist a docu-series about the high-profile case found inside the car after it was released back to Rogers' family sometime after August 2015. The brush, Buckler argued, could have been used by a possible suspect. It, along with other hairs pulled from the vehicle, were never compared to samples from the FBI's CODIS database, which contains DNA samples for more than 23 million individuals. "That avenue was never explored," Buckler said. Young followed the defense's questioning by referencing two individuals who he said the commonwealth has suspected of somehow being linked to the case but have not been charged. Those individuals, Nick and Rosemary Houck, are relatives of Brooks Houck, who is charged with murder and tampering with physical evidence in the case. Nick Houck was a police officer with the Bardstown Police Department at the time of Rogers' disappearance and was fired after allegedly interfering in the investigation, according to court records. When asked by Young whether the possibility of there being additional suspects changes his views on Lawson's alleged involvement, he responded, 'Not in any way.' The daughters of two of Lawson's past wives took the stand after Snow. Lauren Hardin, daughter of Lawson's late ex-wife, Tammy Lawson, took the stand first. The prosecution's questioning centered on the purpose of a July 4, 2015 phone call Lawson made to Houck's phone just after midnight. Lawson originally told investigators he made the call to ask Houck about a rental property for Hardin, but his explanation has changed since he made that statement. At the conclusion of the proceedings on May 28, prosecutors played audio from grand jury testimony he gave on three different occasions in 2023. During his first appearance in May 2023, he told jurors the phone call was to tell him he had finished a job at a worksite. At his third appearance, he said the call was to inform Houck that the job of moving Rogers' car was done — a task he said he was enlisted to help with after Houck told him he "wanted his wife gone.' Hardin testified that she was not looking for a rental property at the time, adding that she had previously rented from Houck and could have contacted him herself. Still, she said, it would be plausible for Lawson to inquire about the topic on her behalf. Elizabeth Chesser, the daughter of Lawson's most recent wife and the mother of Joseph Lawson's child, followed Hardin on the stand. Joseph Lawson, Steven Lawson's son, is also charged in the case with conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence. Chesser said Lawson and her mother got together in late 2017, just months after Tammy Lawson died. She said Lawson told her in September 2017 that he was at one point planning to leave Tammy because she knew he "committed murder.' "No evidence, no case,' she recalled Lawson telling her, which she said was a reference to the fact that investigators have never recovered Rogers' body. Chesser did not realize any possible connection between Lawson's comments and the Rogers case until she recognized his voice while watching a docu-series, 'The Disappearance of Crystal Rogers,' in 2018, but she did not speak to investigators about the case until the following year. Darren Wolff, a defense attorney for Lawson, was shocked by Chesser's inaction and cast skepticism on her story. He asked about her substance abuse during the time when the conversation with Lawson occurred, to which she said she had been sober for about two months before the alleged comments. Wolff also asked whether her consumption of a docu-series about the case may have influenced her memory. 'That's not something you forget,' Chesser said. Both Steven and Joseph Lawson formerly worked for Houck, who is a prominent real estate entrepreneur in Nelson County. Two witnesses called to the stand May 28 were former employees of Houck and testified about their interactions with Lawson around the time of Rogers' disappearance. Stacie Cranmer, who built decks and installed insulation for Houck, was the first of those two witnesses. She testified she saw Lawson and Houck riding around a neighborhood in a truck where a job site was located on one of the days leading up to Rogers' disappearance, which was unusual for him. When they finished driving around, Lawson was walking around the area where Cranmer was eating lunch. She asked him about why he was riding with Houck, to which he responded that Houck needed help to "take care of this girl,' Cranmer said. Her testimony was similar to a statement she gave to the Nelson County Sheriff's Office in October 2015, Wolff said, but differed in that Cranmer said at the time Lawson mentioned the girl in question was using drugs, which Rogers had never been documented doing. Charlie Girdley, another former employee for Houck, testified that he spent time with the Lawsons July 3 — the night Rogers was last seen on the Houck family farm. Girdley said he and Joseph Lawson paid a visit to Houck after they got off work. Girdley picked up a check, he said, and Houck gave Joseph Lawson a set of keys. Girdley said he was told Joseph Lawson was going to perform maintenance work on the car. Girdley also recalled a conversation he had with Steven Lawson. Lawson told Girdley that Houck came to him for help with getting rid of his "old lady,' but he told him that he was not the person for that request and pointed him to Girdley. Girdley said he laughed off the comment. The defense countered this testimony again by questioning Girdley about his struggles with substance abuse. Wolff also asked Girdley about why he did not mention those details until 2023 when he was arrested for unrelated reasons, despite being interviewed by investigators in 2015 and 2016. Girdley said he did not want to get in trouble for something he was not involved in. Following a series of witnesses who had known Lawson personally, two witnesses in law enforcement discussed cell phone records linked to Lawson. Tim O'Daniel, a detective with the Louisville Metro Police Digital Forensics Unit, said the Kentucky State Police approached him in 2022 to analyze information from Lawson's cell phone. His analysis found that on the night of July 3, Lawson's device traveled toward the area where Rogers' car was found before traveling back in the opposite direction. The analysis, however, cannot 'specifically pinpoint where a device is' — only the general area, O'Daniel said. Melissa Dover, a crime and intelligence analyst with the Elizabethtown Police Department, testified about a report she prepared about calls exchanged between Steven, Joseph and Tammy Lawson that night. Several calls were exchanged between the three phones, Dover said. Her report also found that a call between Houck and Lawson a few days later on July 9 was deleted, though precisely when is unclear. Contact reporter Killian Baarlaer at kbaarlaer@ or @bkillian72 on X. This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Crystal Rogers murder case: Steven Lawson trial continues
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Yahoo
Nelson County Sheriff's Office sells K-9 plushies to support community-funded K-9 program
May 3—NELSON COUNTY — Continuing its mission to support a K-9 program solely on community donations, the Nelson County Sheriff's Office is selling look-alike plushies of its K-9 Raith. "We got 250 of them, and we're selling them for 25 bucks apiece," Sheriff Kurt Schwind said. "All funds will go toward the K-9 program." Approximately 20 have already sold in less than a week, Schwind said. He finds this unsurprising for a couple of reasons. First, his agency got the idea from Benson County, where he said the plushies sold "like hotcakes." Second is the sheer volume of support his agency received while fundraising to get the program started in the first place. It cost $15,000 to purchase K-9 Raith and train both her and her handler, as well as an additional $50,000 for a vehicle that's outfitted for a K-9. The amount of support the sheriff's office has received throughout the process is overwhelming, Schwind said. The agency was able to raise enough money in approximately 18 months. "We've gotten donations from $5 to $4,000, and every little bit helps," he said. "Everybody wants to be part of it, and that's what's awesome about the whole thing." American Legion posts out of Lakota and Devils Lake have supported the ongoing fundraising effort by donating the money to purchase the plushies, which are sold by Hero Industries. "And then, once we run out, the Legions told us to come back and ask for more money to get more dogs," Schwind said. He hopes to distribute the plushies throughout community stores and other locations to give the fundraiser more visibility. For now, they're available at the sheriff's office, which is located at 210 B. Ave. SW, Ste. 102 in Lakota, and at the courthouse, located in the same building in suite 203. Funds raised through the sale of K-9 Raith plushies will help cover care and maintenance costs, such as vet bills, food, grooming and vehicle maintenance. It will also help cover the 30 minutes of overtime per day that her handler is paid. Schwind hopes to keep these costs out of the county budget for as long as possible, because they may necessitate a tax increase. "The longer we can keep her off the budget, I think, the better off we're going to be, as far as just having community support, having our commissioners on board with us and that kind of thing," he said. K-9 Raith has certainly proven her value in the six months since she joined the sheriff's office, according to Schwind. She was instrumental in apprehending the double homicide suspect on the Spirit Lake Reservation last month, he said. He said the threat of her release prompted the suspect, Johnnie Jay Gaking IV, to surrender. "She's already made a difference, and she'll continue to get better," Schwind said. "She's already great, but through training and stuff like that, she'll only get better." K-9 Raith is multi-purpose, which means her skills include finding narcotics, tracking people, offering protection and patrol support as well as article searches, during which she can find items disposed of by suspects. "One of the demonstrations we do just to show how good she is is we'll take a coin and we'll throw it off into the grass and send her out to do a search," Schwind said. "She'll find that coin in no time." He believes her presence alone changes behaviors in the community. When people know an agency has a K-9, they are less likely to transport drugs through the area, he said. Schwind believes any number of drugs K9-Raith keeps off the streets, whether by deterrence or apprehension, will increase safety in the county.
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Yahoo
Man found dead in Nelson County
Lovingston Va — The Nelson County Sheriff's Office is looking for a suspect, after a man was found dead in a home. Friday, April 18th, Nelson County deputies responded to home in the Shipman area, for reports of an unresponsive man. Deputies arrived to find the man dead, with a gunshot wound to the chest. The victim has been identified as Kevin Scott Small. The Sheriff's Office is searching for a suspect, who has been charged with Second Degree Murder and Use of a Firearm in the Commission of a Felony. The suspect has yet to be named by law enforcement and is not believed to be in Nelson County at this time. The Sheriff's Office says they don't believe there is a threat to the community. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Kentucky floods: Which areas have warnings? When will they end? What to know Sunday
Kentucky remains in the throes of deadly flooding from a severe storm system that has dumped torrential rain over the state since Wednesday. The continued significant levels of rainfall have resulted in historic flooding in some areas. Cities in the central swath of the commonwealth, including Lexington and Bowling Green, have higher chances of seeing impacts, meteorologists said. Heavy rainfall is expected until the weather system starts to move east Sunday morning, according to the National Weather Service in Louisville. The National Weather Service in Louisville issued the following warnings: A flash flood warning for Bullitt, Nelson and Spencer counties in central Kentucky due to expected thunderstorms producing heavy rain. Areas expected to experience flash flooding included Bardstown, Shepherdsville, Pioneer Village, Taylorsville, Mount Washington, Hillview, Lebanon Junction, Hebron Estates, Bloomfield and Fox Chase. A flash flood warning for Breckenridge and Meade counties into Sunday morning, affecting Brandenburg, Hardinsburg, Webster, Irvington, Cloverport, Muldraugh, Ekron, Basin Spring, Clifton Mills and Garfield. A flood warning for Anderson, Franklin and Woodford counties through Tuesday afternoon, impacted by the Kentucky River at Frankfort Lock where more flooding was expected due to additional rainfall expected. Kentucky River at Lockport Lock could affect Carroll, Owen and Henry counties; and Elkhorn Creek Near Peaks Mill could impact Franklin County. The flood stage was 41.4 feet Saturday evening and the river is expected to rise to a crest of 47 feet Monday morning, comparable to a crest of 47.5 feet on January 25, 1937, one of the area's most significant floods. Many state and county roads in west Kentucky were closed Saturday as floodwaters swept over pavement. Clinton, the seat of Hickman County, was inaccessible from several directions due to road closures and some of the remaining routes into town were barely above water as of midday Saturday. Kentucky weather updates: Thunder Over Louisville 2025 canceled due to weather At least two people have died in flooding-related incidents in Kentucky. A 9-year-old Frankfort boy died Friday after being swept away by floodwaters while walking to a school bus stop, Frankfort police said. A 74-year-old man was found dead inside a submerged vehicle in the 2800 block of Nelsonville Road in Boston Saturday, according to the Nelson County Sheriff's Office. The National Weather Service is urging motorists to stay off flooded roads. Most flood fatalities occur in vehicles, according to the agency. More than half of all flood-related drownings occur when a vehicle is driven into hazardous floodwaters, and the second-highest percentage of flood-related deaths is due to walking into or near floodwaters, the service said. Six inches of fast-moving water can knock over an adult. Twelve inches of rushing water can sweep most cars off a road and 2 feet of rushing water can carry away SUVs and trucks. Kentucky's capital city could soon see the Kentucky River crest to the highest level in more than three decades. Frankfort Mayor Layne Wilkerson said the river is predicted to crest at more than 44 feet and could surpass the levels it reached in 1989. Since Friday, the river has risen more than 10 feet and is expected to rise an additional 5 feet by Monday, Wilkerson said in a Facebook post. Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said the incident could become one of the city's top 10 worst flooding events when the Ohio River crests in the city Wednesday. According to the five most significant Kentucky floods are: The Ohio River Great Flood of January 1937 surpassed all prior floods during the previous 175 years of modern occupancy of the Ohio River Valley. About 70% of Louisville was submerged, forcing 175,000 residents to flee. About 90% of Jeffersonville, Indiana, was flooded with 13,000 residents forced to flee their homes. Louisville received 15 inches of rain over 12 days, from January 13-24. More than 19 inches of rain fell over the month. At Louisville, the crest of the 1937 flood is still a full 10 feet higher than the second-highest crest set in 1945. At McAlpine Lock, the 1937 flood crested at 85.4 feet. The flood stage is 55 feet. Damage was estimated at about $250 million — more than $3.3 billion in 2025 dollars. The flood that beset the Ohio River Valley in 1945 is the second-biggest flood at Louisville, peaking at 74.4 feet. Late on March 5, the river was flowing over a sandbag dike and caused about 50,000 citizens in the Louisville area to evacuate. The bulk of the heavy rain that caused the flood fell during a three-week period leading up to the flood. The rain came in four main waves on February 20–21, February 25–26, March 1-2, and March 5-6. Damage was about estimated at around $2.6 million. Large amounts of rain fell on central Kentucky and southern Indiana from the end of February to the beginning of March 1997. Thunderstorms and large areas of heavy rain repeatedly moved over the same areas, causing record flooding along smaller streams and some of the worst flooding along the Ohio River since at least 1964, and in some places since the Great Flood of 1937. A few smaller streams set their all-time records. Water reached the rooftops in Boston in Nelson County. Barge traffic was halted on the Ohio River when the locks flooded. The Louisville area sustained about $200 million in damage from the flooding, affecting about 50,000 homes. The region saw a total of about $400 million in damages. Interstates 64 and 65 were closed, and 92 counties in Kentucky and 14 in Indiana were declared disaster areas. Nineteen deaths occurred in Kentucky, including nine due to attempts to cross flooded roadways. The flood that struck Frankfort saw the Kentucky River peak on December 10 at a record 48.47 feet and led to the state capital being almost completely cut off from the rest of the commonwealth. About 1,000 people fled their homes. Strengthening low pressure moving slowly from Texas to Michigan brought Gulf moisture northward, resulting in historic rainfall across the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys. Parts of southern Kentucky saw 8-10 inches of rain. Bowling Green, Marrowbone, Bradfordsville, Richmond and Albany all set new records for two-day rainfall amounts and almost all streams and rivers in southern Indiana and central Kentucky experienced some sort of flooding. Stoner Creek at Paris and the Kentucky River at High Bridge attained their third-highest crests on record. The Green River at Rochester stayed above flood stage for two weeks following the rain. Damage totaled more than $30 million and there were five fatalities in central Kentucky. Contributing: Keisha Rowe, Olivia Evans, Connor Giffin, Stephanie Kuzydym and Lucas Aulbach, Louisville Courier Journal Contact IndyStar reporter Cheryl V. Jackson at or 317-444-6264. Follow her on or Bluesky: @ This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky floods 2025: See flood warnings, river crest timing, more
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Yahoo
Nelson County responders find 1 dead inside fully submerged vehicle
Video note: Despite this article's time stamp, the above video is the latest forecast from The Weather Authority. NELSON COUNTY, Ky. (FOX 56) — 'Please do not try to cross flooded roadways' is a request many Kentuckians have become familiar with over the past week, but the Nelson County Sheriff's Office said it carries a serious meaning and could be the difference between life and death after emergency personnel found a person dead inside a fully submerged vehicle in the early hours of Saturday morning. Deputies posted on Facebook that around 3:40 a.m. on Saturday, Nelson County Dispatch told authorities about a water rescue taking place involving a person trapped in their vehicle on the 2800 block of Nelsonville Road. When emergency responders got to the vehicle, a 74-year-old was found dead inside, Nelson County deputies wrote. Nelson County responders find 1 dead inside fully submerged vehicle Mandatory evacuation issued for northern Kentucky city: 'Now is the time to leave' People in Jessamine County spent Friday taking in the damage, from a safe distance The name of the person found dead in the vehicle is being withheld until the family has been notified. The sheriff's office wrote that the result of driving through flooded waters doesn't outweigh the risk. Mandatory evacuation issued for northern Kentucky city: 'Now is the time to leave' 'Turn around don't drown is more than a saying,' deputies said; 'it's the difference between life and death.' A map of state roads, including those closed due to weather hazards, can be found at the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet website. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
