A bridge in Nelson County will be renamed in honor of Crystal Rogers and her father, Tommy Ballard.
Nelson County Fiscal Court on Tuesday unanimously voted to name a bridge on Woodlawn Road (Hwy 605) for the two homicide victims.
Nelson County Judge-Executive Tim Hutchins will submit the request to state Sen. Jimmy Higdon and Rep. Candy Massaroni, who will forward the request to the General Assembly, according to media reports.
One approach of the bridge will be named Crystal Rogers Memorial Bridge, while the opposite approach will be called Tommy Ballard Memorial Bridge.
Rogers, who was 35 when she disappeared from Bardstown on July 3, 2015, has never been found. Her live-in boyfriend and father of one of her five children, Brooks Houck, was found guilty of her murder in July 2025. He was sentenced to life in prison in September 2025.
Ballard was 54 when he was shot in the chest and killed while hunting with his grandson on November 19, 2016, on his Nelson County property near the Bluegrass Parkway, according to Ballard’s FBI profile. He was actively searching for his daughter’s killer and had created a Team Crystal group dedicated to finding his daughter’s killer.
The FBI is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the individual[s] responsible for Ballard’s murder.
The Kentucky Standard and The News-Enterprise first reported the bridge naming.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
