WQXE NEWS

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear is announcing extended support for summer meals programs for Kentucky children.

According to the governor’s office, each eligible student will receive a one-time benefit of $120 to purchase food throughout the summer. About 450,000 Kentucky children will be eligible through the Federal Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Program.

Students 6 to 18 years of age who are current recipients of SNAP, KTAP, or Kinship Care benefits, along with children attending schools participating in the National School Lunch Program, are automatically enrolled in the program, while applications for families not automatically enrolled are accepted at kysebt.ky.gov or by contacting your local Department of Community-Based Services office (1-855-306-8959).

The governor’s office says “Providing families with grocery money to make up for the loss of school meals is a proven approach to address the spike in child hunger that occurs during the summer break.”

Several area school districts have launched or are about to launch their summer meals programs including Breckinridge County Schools, Hardin County Schools, and Elizabethtown Independent Schools. Contact your school district for details.

The first trial of a suspect in the Crystal Rogers investigation began Tuesday at the Warren County Justice Center, with Steven Lawson going before a jury on charges of Conspiracy to Commit Murder and Tampering with Physical Evidence.

After Judge Charles Simms III denied a final pretrial motion to continue from the defense as well as a motion from Louisville-area media outlets for a pool camera to be permitted in the courtroom, juror selection began with a pool of 37 potential jurors. A 15-person jury, which includes three alternates that will not be part of deliberations, was seated by about 12:30 p.m. Opening statements began about an hour later.

Special Prosecutor Shane Young recapped the days around Rogers’s disappearance, including the last time she was seen by one of her children on July 3, 2015, her mother Sherry Ballard reporting her missing two days later, and the discovery of her car on the Bluegrass Parkway later that day. Young said testimony and evidence will show the role Lawson played in assisting Brooks Houck in moving Rogers’s car and covering up her death.

Defense attorney Darren Wolff said the evidence in the case will show that Steven Lawson is guilty of Tampering with Physical Evidence, specifically citing Lawson adjusting the seat in Rogers’s car when he went to pick up his son Joseph Lawson, who was driving the car on the Bluegrass Parkway when it got a flat tire. Wolff said the evidence on Conspiracy to Commit Murder is nowhere near beyond a reasonable doubt, and said the commonwealth has worked to create a narrative to answer the question of what happened to Rogers in order to close what he said has been called one of the biggest mysteries in Kentucky legal history.

Young’s first witness was Sherry Ballard, who recounted the deterioration of Rogers’s relationship with Houck ahead of her disappearance. Ballard said after not hearing from Rogers she was on her way to file a missing persons report when she spotted Houck near a Bardstown gas station. Ballard said Houck “looked at me like I was talking about a person on the street” and did not go with her to file the report, and she said she knew something was wrong when she saw Houck and Rogers’s young son Eli in the backseat.

Also testifying Tuesday was Detective Jon Snow, who at the time of the disappearance was a detective with the Nelson County Sheriff’s Office and was the lead investigator at the beginning of the case. Snow discussed the early steps of the investigation, including the discovery of Rogers’s car.

The defense did not cross-examine Ballard, and Snow was still on the stand when court was adjourned for the day. The trial will resume Wednesday morning.

The Hardin County Fiscal Court met for their second meeting of the month Tuesday.

The fiscal court approved an amendment to the 2024-2025 budget, along with a resolution for an engineering services contract with the Lincoln Trail Area Development District for a pavement analysis toolkit. That contract is not to exceed $15,000.

Hardin County E911 Director Mike Leo reported that dispatch answered 4,118 calls in April. 1,355 EMS runs and 479 fire runs were dispatched.

Hardin County Judge/Executive Keith Taul announced the latest update on Individual Assistance claims in the county following April storms and flooding.

“To date in Hardin County, Individual Assistance registrations, there’s been 408 of those, and that has added up to almost $2.5 million in claims that have been approved and paid,” Taul said.

Visit FEMA’s Disaster Recovery Center, located at Kentucky State Police Post Four in Elizabethtown, or visit www.fema.gov for more information on filing a claim.

Taul said the county is still waiting on the White House to approve Public Assistance, which would make funding available for repairs to county roads and infrastructure.

The Hardin County Fiscal Court will next meet June 10.