BARDSTOWN, Ky. — Attorneys for Joseph Lawson have filed a motion for reduced bond and home incarceration in the Nelson Circuit Court.

Lawson is charged with conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence in connection with the disappearance of Crystal Rogers. 

Joseph Lawson is charged in connection with the murder of Crystal Rogers. Rogers disappeared from Bardstown, Kentucky in 2015. (Kentucky Online Offender Lookup)

According to the motion, Lawson’s bail is set for a $50,000 unsecured bond with the condition of continued cooperation with the Commonwealth on the charge of tampering with physical evidence. On the charge of conspiracy to commit murder, his bail is set as a $500,000 cash bond.

Lawson’s attorneys, Kevin Coleman and Robert Boyd, argue that the bail is "excessive, oppressive and amounts to a denial of bail considering his socio-economic status, his presumption of innocence and his anticipated conduct if released.”

In requesting home incarceration, his lawyers argue Lawson is not a danger to the community or a flight risk as his paraplegia restricts his ability to move independently. They say his movements will be tracked through GPS monitoring.

The motion asks for his bail to be reduced to a $50,000 unsecured bond, or a “meaningful reduction” in his bond that considers his socio-economic position, as well as the home incarceration with GPS monitoring, medical releases and attorney-office visit releases.

Lawson was arraigned Sept. 7 in Nelson County Circuit Court and pleaded not guilty to both of his charges. He has a criminal history. Since 2009, he has had 18 charges against him ranging from traffic violations to misdemeanors. The charges are based in Marion, Nelson, Spencer and Washington counties. Twelve of the 18 charges have occurred since 2018.

Rogers was reported missing July 5, 2015, by her mother, Sherry Ballard. Her body has never been found. Brooks Houck, Rogers’ boyfriend at the time of her disappearance, was arrested and charged with her murder Sept. 27, 2023.

Lawson’s father, Steve Lawson, was also arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence. The elder Lawson pleaded not guilty to the charged.