WQXE News

American Legion Post 87 in Hodgenville will host their fifth annual BBQ and Bikes event this Saturday at Creekfront Park.

“The first event we’ll have that morning will be with the CMA,” said Russell Tucker with the Legion post. “They’re going to have a big bike ride. It’s going to leave out of LaRue County High School. The sign up is going to start at 9 a.m. and kickstands up at 10. Registration is $20 for that.”

That ride will last about an hour and will end at the park.

The event is open to all, and Tucker says there’s lots to enjoy.

“We’re going to have a kid zone,” Tuckers said. “All the kid zone stuff is free, so bring your kid, let him do the bouncy houses and such. We’re going to have a bike show. We’ll have plenty of trophies to give out.”

The Legion post is excited to welcome three bands to the event stage.

“We’ve got Autonomous starting at 11 a.m.,” Tucker said. “Then we’ve got Sticktight starting at 3, and Bittersweet will wrap up our thing at 7 p.m.”

Visit the American Legion Post 87 BBQ and Bikes Facebook page for more information.

The prosecution called more witnesses Wednesday as the trial of Crystal Rogers investigation suspect Steven Lawson continued into its second day.

During the first half of the day, the prosecution called witnesses who were in contact with Lawson at the time of Rogers’s disappearance and during the subsequent investigation. 

Elizabeth Chesser has a child with Joseph Lawson, and her mother began dating Steven Lawson in 2017. Chesser said Steven Lawson had previously made a comment about leaving his late wife Tammy Lawson because ”she knew I had committed murder and was going to tell on me.” When asked by the defense why she hadn’t told this to police, she said she was afraid she “would be next if I said anything.”

Stacie Cranmer was working for Brooks Houck in July of 2015, and said when she asked Lawson why he had been riding with Brooks Houck in his truck Lawson said “he had to take care of some woman with five kids. She’s not doing too well.” Cranmer said she left a voicemail with the Nelson County Sheriff’s Office regarding the comment but did not get a reply. She made a written statement after the launch of the investigation.

In the second half of the day, the prosecution called Tim O’Daniel, a digital forensic investigator with the Louisville Metro Police Department, who showed how Lawson’s location the night of July 3, 2015, was tracked by showing cell phone towers his phone pinged to that night. O’Daniel said this technique does not show a specific location, but it shows Lawson went west and then east in the area of the Bluegrass Parkway before going to the Thompson Hill Road area. The prosecution also called Hardin County Grand Jury Coordinator Shannon Burba to play Lawson’s testimony from his three appearances before a special grand jury to show the changes he made to his story.

The defense focused much of their cross examination questions on the reliability of the earlier witnesses’ memories of events that took place nearly ten years ago, along with the impact documentaries and other media on the case could have on their opinions. The defense also questioned several witnesses on their previous drug abuse and the possible impacts it could have on their memories of the events they described.

The prosecution said it has at least three more witnesses to call, but plans to finish their case by Thursday’s lunch break.