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Nicholas Houck, the brother of the man convicted for the murder of Crystal Rogers, appeared in Nelson Circuit Court Thursday for arraignment on a Class D Felony Perjury charge.

When Nelson Circuit Judge Charles Simms III initially called Houck’s case, Houck said his attorney was Patrick Renn, who was not present but Houck said was supposed to be there. Simms gave Houck time to contact Renn, but when he called the case again Renn was still not present. 

Houck said Renn had told him to “proceed on without him.” Prosecutors told the judge they contacted Renn and he said he has not been retained, and the prosecutors said he has not entered an appearance in the case. When Simms asked Houck how long it would take him to get an attorney, Houck said Renn is going to be his attorney “but this is something I can deal with.” Simms said the commonwealth said Renn has not been retained. 

 “He wants to know what you guys are getting at before he kind of makes a decision,” Houck said.

“He wants to know what you guys are- doing what now?” asked Simms.

“Yeah, I’m being charged with perjury, and I have no idea why you guys have charged me with that,” Houck said

“First of all, I don’t charge people with perjury,” Simms said.

Houck said he has had several conversations with Renn, but the attorney wanted information on the case before he made a decision. Simms appointed a public defender to stand in for Houck in order to proceed with the arraignment.

The public defender waived formal indictment and entered a plea of not guilty. Simms scheduled a hearing for July 2 to set the case for trial and pre-trial. Simms told Houck to have an attorney present at that time, and said he would review the commonwealth’s motion to correct the record on the indictment at that time.

An area organization dedicated to supporting victims of domestic violence and their children will be closing at the end of the month.

SpringHaven Inc. published a statement Wednesday that states that they will be closing their domestic violence shelter effective June 30, 2026. The statement cites “the loss of funding and inability to secure sufficient resources to sustain shelter and outreach operations” as the reason for the closure.

The statement reads: “Our immediate priority is ensuring that every resident survivor and their children are transitioned safely and thoughtfully to appropriate housing, services, and support systems. We are working closely with community partners to facilitate individualized transition plans and warm hand-offs to receiving agencies and programs.”

The statement states that Barren River Area Safe Space in Bowling Green, the Center for Women and Families in Louisville, Bethany House in Somerset, and Greenhouse 17 in Lexington are among the partner organizations that are prepared to assist. ZeroV, the state domestic violence coalition, stated in a Facebook post they are working with SpringHaven during the transition and are seeking community partners. A full transitional service plan should be available at www.zerov.org by July 1.

Victims of domestic violence can call 1-800-799-7233 for assistance.

The Radcliff City Council met for their second meeting of the month Tuesday.

The first reading was held on the city’s fiscal year 2026-2027 budget and accompanying ordinances. City Attorney Mike Pike read the budget ordinance. For total resources available, under the General Fund the budget has $19,108,450, under Road/LGEA funds the budget has $379,000, and under Stormwater Utility the budget has $1,084,400. For anticipated appropriations, under the General Fund the budget has $19,108,450, under Road/LGEA the budget has $379,000, and under Stormwater Utility the budget has $1,084,400.

The budget will go up for approval during a special called meeting Thursday.

In other meeting news, the council approved an interlocal agreement with the City of Elizabethtown for the development of a law enforcement shooting range on Gaither Station Road. Radcliff Mayor JJ Duvall said the project is a product of the strong partnership between the cities, and helps the cities get around scheduling issues at the current range at the Hardin County landfill.

“We compete with every other agency in the state of Kentucky as well as federal agencies for firing and qualifying for firing ranges, and you obviously want your officers to be trained in firing when they have to,” Duvall said. “Obviously, we hope they never do, but if they do, you absolutely want them to be qualified, certified, and making sure that they do everything they need to.”

The Radcliff City Council will next meet for a regularly scheduled meeting July 13.