PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "While on the stand May 30, Lawson said he moved the driver’s seat forward in Rogers’ car and retrieved his son’s mini Louisville Slugger bat that he carried with him everywhere. Lawson’s attorneys have already conceded that he is guilty of tampering with physical evidence. Prosecutors argued that Lawson agreeing to help move the car after Houck told him he “wanted his wife gone” could constitute a conspiracy."
------------------------------------------------------
STORY: "Closing arguments complete, deliberations underway on Day 4 of Steven Lawson trial," The Louisville Courier Journal (Reporter Killian Baarlaer) reports, Noting that: "
GIST: A jury is in deliberations May 30 in the first of two trials set in connection with the Crystal Rogers case.
Steven Lawson was the final person to take the stand in the trial centered on the disappearance of Rogers, the Bardstown mother who disappeared in 2015. The defense rested its case following testimony from Lawson, 54, who faces charges of conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with physical evidence.
He was the second person to testify on the fourth day of the trial, following brief testimony from his mother. Lawson admitted to picking up his son, Joseph Lawson, from Bluegrass Parkway in Bardstown after the car “broke down” on the side of the road the night when Rogers was last seen, but denied having any knowledge of Brooks Houck’s alleged murder of Rogers or any role in planning it.
Rogers' body has never been recovered, but she is presumed dead by investigators.
Joseph Lawson is also charged with tampering with physical evidence and conspiracy to commit murder and will stand trial in June alongside Brooks Houck, Rogers’ boyfriend at the time of her disappearance. Houck is charged with murder and tampering with physical evidence.
While on the stand May 30, Lawson said he moved the driver’s seat forward in Rogers’ car and retrieved his son’s mini Louisville Slugger bat that he carried with him everywhere. Lawson’s attorneys have already conceded that he is guilty of tampering with physical evidence.
Prosecutors argued that Lawson agreeing to help move the car after Houck told him he “wanted his wife gone” could constitute a conspiracy.
Prior to closing arguments, Judge Charles Simms III told jurors he hopes to have the case “resolved” by the end of the day."
The entire story can be read at:
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
———————————————————————————————
FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
—————————————————————————————————
FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
-------------------------------
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
———————————————————————————————
FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
—————————————————————————————————
FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
