Tommy Ballard was a proud father, brother, grandfather, friend, and husband. Details: On May 25 2013, Officer Jason Ellis was killed after finishing his shift for the Bardstown, Kentucky Police Department. Kathy Netherland taught special education at Bardstown Elementary School. The HLN cable channel is a spinoff of CNN. A cop on a small-town police force and an elementary school teacher and her teen daughter are among the most unlikely of unlikely victims. None, however, have led to any arrests. She was a widow and in photos she looked younger than her reported age of 48. When pressed for details about how he knew it was gang initiation, he said, "Well, I know they was tortured.". A bullet hit Ballard in his chest while he was out hunting. The FBI reportedly said the residents of the property that investigators and construction equipment focused on had no connection to the case, and the federal agency said it will pay for any repairs to the property. Kathy Netherland taught special education at Bardstown Elementary School. To watch the 2018 series, visitOxygen's site. I hope Officer Ellis and his family receive justice soon. Since my moms been missing, life has been really hard. The land, which sits on 30 acres, is owned by the mother of Brooks Houck, who was named a suspect in the case in 2017. FBI agents have conducted multiple searches in and near Bardstown since Rogers went missing. Indiana true crime podcasters Ashley and Brit examine three mysterious murders and disappearances in Bardstown, Kentucky that they think may be related, including those of Crystal Rogers and her father. Kathy was attacked at the front doorway suggesting that she was attacked after she answered the doorbell. That was disapproved by her family and Samantha also didnt babysit for the Ellis family, that was untrue gossip and hearsay. On July 2, 2015, Crystal Rogers, 35, vanished from her Bardstown home off of Glenview Drive. Follow Season three, "Beyond Bardstown: Unsolved," is coming Monday, Oct. 17. Houck and Rogers have a son together. Alternately known as "The Bardstown Murders" or the "The Nelson County Murders," the area is at the center of five unsolved deaths and disappearances, which continue to inspire speculation, gossip and intrigue far beyond the county line. Tommy's family announces reward of $20,000. [] It's taking a lot of energy and effort. Crystal Rogerss family has already been afflicted with too much tragedy. Within a very few short minutes of his killing a couple of vehicles rolled up on the scene and both of them attempted to use the police radio to get help for him. He might have been murdered in hopes that the investigation of Chrystals case would fade away if he wasnt constantly raising the issue but it seems more likely to me that killing him would only increase the pressure to solve her case. pic.twitter.com/CITH0yeQ8i. Unfortunately, the Ballard family went through a similar situation in 1982, when Tommys sister, Sherry Ballard, who was seven months pregnant at the time, was murdered by her then-husband, Edsel Eddie Barnes because he didnt want to pay child support. Within months of the murders, police had searched more than 90 cars in the area that matched the vehicle description, according to WDRB,. Theres also a $200,000 reward. That same month his brother Nick Houck was fired from the Bardstown P.D. , "My whole family's name is trashed for something completely not even tied to me. By 7:54 AM, authorities were called to the 1400 block of Ed Brent Road for a death investigation. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. My Theories on the Bardstown Murders and the Disappearance of Crystal Rogers I used to believe that the murder of police officer Jason Ellis on May 25, 2013, the Netherland Murders on April 21, 2014, the disappearance of Crystal Rogers on July 3, 2015, and the murder of Tommy Ballard on November 19, 2016 in Bardstown, Kentucky we're all related. -, Press J to jump to the feed. Rogers parents were immediately vocal in their suspicions of boyfriend Brooks Houck. Crime News is your destination for true crime stories from around the world, breaking crime news, and information about Oxygen's original true crime shows and documentaries. Houck has denied involvement with Rogers'disappearance and has never been charged. Crystal Rogers case: FBI Louisville, other federal agencies search for Crystal Rogers with new warrants. https://assets.speakcdn.com/assets/2497/ncadv_kentucky_fact_sheet_2020.pdf. In August of 2017, Tommy Ballard's two brothers put up a sign offering $20,000 for information leading to an arrest of the person who murdered their brother. Whenever possible, actual redditors have participated in investigating the events. Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Samantha was attacked near a different door suggesting she was attempting to flee. The brush was a trapone that was sprung when someone ambushed Ellis, shooting him several times with a shotgun. A massive search for her turned up more questions than answers, frustrating the authorities and loved ones alike. Throughout the search,police were allowing only a few cars into the subdivision and reporters were kept out. HLN Investigations is a news team that produces breaking news specials and HLN Original Series within the crime and justice genre. Crystal Rogers' mother, Sherry Ballard, hopes that the current FBI investigation in a Bardstown neighborhood may finally yield closure for her and family. If you have information related to the disappearance of Crystal Rogers, please call the FBI tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI or visit www.crystalrogerstaskforce.com. Do You Have Any? The next morning Crystal vanishes, but Brooks does not think it's odd because she occasionally spent the night at the homes of her friends. The ex-troopers were also looking into Tommy Ballard's death and theslaying of teacher Kathy Netherland and her teenage daughter Samanthain 2014. Although detectives considered Houck a suspect, he was never charged in connection with Crystals disappearance. "Pick up the phone, call the number. Killing a patrolman just because he once arrested you is possible but highly unusual. There's a very good, well-researched article about these cases here that includes some other unsolved murders that have occurred in the area. But, theres also a dark side to the region. with the Bardstown Police. Five years ago, Kathy Netherland and her 16-year-old daughter Samantha were found shot to dead inside their Bardstown, Kentucky home on April 22, 2014. I'd like to think that if something happened to Mom that she would have tried to get a call off. Officer Jason Ellis (d: May 25th, 2013) - ambushed and shot to death while returning home from duty. Despite such an incentive, the murders remain unsolved. That disgraced Bardstown cop Nick Houck was on the same force as Ellis tickles the back of the brain; if he helped his brother cover up a murder, what else might he be responsible for? Tommy had been shot in the chest from behind. I am simply using him as an example. Vanished-Crystal Rogers - True Crimecast (October 2018) Two true crime podcasters, John and Jamie, theorize about the Crystal Rogers case. The Kentucky Standard reported in October 2015 that detectives believed hed killed Crystal during a fight. Ballard was struck in the chest, and died on the spot. Lots of corruption. ", None of her claims, however, have ever been substantiated. The Nelson County Coroner's Office reportedly said he was shot once in the chest, with the bullet entering his chest and exiting his back. People need to see order and connectedness. NELSON COUNTY, Ky. (WAVE) - It has been seven years since mother and daughter were brutally murdered in Nelson County in the small community of Botland. Forward to Dateline, 48 Hours or some entity with the money and resources to dig further. Their only possible clue was a black Chevrolet Impala, which had been filmed near the crime scene on April 21, 2014, the night of the murder. In May 2013, Officer Jason Ellis with the Bardstown Police Department was on his way home when someone attacked and killed him off of Exit 34 at around 2 a.m. Ellis noticed the road was blocked by several freshly-cut trees, and when he got out his car to investigate, someone shot and killed him with a 12-gauge shotgun. I suspect that one or more people murdered Jason to solve a problem and Chrystal and her father were murdered by the same to solve perhaps different problems. In August 2021, agents searched a subdivision where Houck owns properties. [] It's taking a lot of energy and effort. When a law enforcement officer is murdered other cops are galvanized. The same day Rogers was reported missing, her car was found abandoned with a flat tire at mile marker 14 on the Bluegrass Parkway in Bardstown, Kentucky. It was the sort of town a young man or woman visits and finds themselves wondering what was so great about the big city, anyway. An FBI Louisville spokesman previously said all three locations hadalready been searched "to various degrees" over the years. Officer Ellis was discovered by a passing motorist. It appears as though this murder was covered up by family members of the murderer. [PREVIOUS STORY: Friend of murdered teacher says she 'loved her daughters more than anything']. However, Sherry has been focusing on advocating for Crystals case and believes that it will provide answers for what happened to her husband. Its been called the most beautiful small town in America, but four unsolved murders and the disappearance of a beloved mother-of-five left an ugly stain on Bardstown, Kentucky. [PREVIOUS STORY: Black Chevy Impala is suspect vehicle in Nelson Co. murders, says KSP]. And the efforts to figure out what happened to Crystal . To submit an anonymous tip to FBI Louisville, go here - https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/seeking-info/jason-ellis, The Murders of Kathy and Samantha Netherland. Everyone wants to know what the hell is going on. You could have the information we need to desperately solve these cases.". As if something unpleasant was going on with them in their lives and no one knew about it. In the five years since Ellis murder, police have interviewed countless people of interest connected with the case and pursued myriad leads. In the absence of any arrests, Bardstowns bars and backstreets have pulsed with conspiracy theories trying to connect the dots between Bardstowns mysterious unsolved crimes. Maybe her daughter had nothing to do with it but could he have seen her family as "trying to break them up?". Get InsideHook in your inbox. "That's not something we've ruled out either, that's a good possibility," said KSP Trooper Jeff Gregory. "I have been asked by the police about the relative location of chairs," said Holly. Were you traveling on Bluegrass Highway between mile markers 21 and 25 on November 19, 2016, before 7:30 am? The stories that my friends and I have of living near the river, most people don't want to believe. Its a disease of armchair sleuthing to see connections between everythingthe same kind of fallacy that produces complex and far-reaching conspiracy theories. Reach Billy Kobin at bkobin@courierjournal.com. There seems to be compelling reason to suspect that Jason was targeted. Police believe Nick interfered with their investigation. Jasons wife was a substitute teacher who had worked at the school where Kathy worked but they have not been linked in any other way. Hed been a baseball star in college, eventually turning pro and playing for a Cincinnati Reds Minor League club for a few years in the early 2000s. In April 2014, nearly a year after Ellis murder, Bardstown was again rocked by the brutal double-homicide of 48-year-old Kathy Netherland and her 16-year-old daughter, Samantha. Although detectives considered Houck a suspect, he was never charged in connection with Crystals disappearance. Sherry Ballard said her daughter's children are now 22, 21, 19, 17 and 9. There is no evidence that he was conducting any kind of independent investigation or was privy to any information that Law Enforcement didnt have. Samantha Netherland was a sophomore at Bardstown High School. "I don't think they would just randomly pick a driveway unless they had a reason to do that," Ballardtold WHAS. #BREAKING: FBI Louisville is conducting judicially authorized activity at 345 Paschal Ballard Lane, Bardstown, KY in relation to the federal investigation into the disappearance of Crystal Rogers. I know that trinkets were taken as trophies. It would be great if someone came forward and gave information to help solve these whether they're related or not and I hope someone does soon. "We are a very close family, and Im not doing anything different that any mother would do for their daughter at all," Ballard added. During the summer of 2020, the FBI took over from Kentucky State Police and the Nelson County Sheriff's Office as the lead investigator inthe case, with over 150 federal agentsservingsearch warrants in August 2020 atthree sites owned by Houck and his family members. I'm from Kentucky and know people in that area. You can live there your whole life and not know many people. They also examine how the brutal, unsolved murders have impacted the small town, population 13,165. Kentucky State Police took the lead on the investigation right away. Is Tommys murder connected to the other Bardstown unsolved cases? City officials held an administrative hearing on Nick Houck's actions and fired him a day later. They had been killed the previous day. The personal beating of Samantha is what keeps me from thinking it was somebody random, though I also can't hypothesize who would have had such an issue or contempt with the girl to beat her so badly before killing her. The crimes left a long-lasting effect on Bardstown. Kathy and Samantha Netherland (d: April 21st, 2014) - mother and daughter were horrifically beat and murdered in their home. Thats how I remember Bardstown. Absolutely. TEMPE, Greece (AP) A head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train flattened carriages, killed at least 36 . Bardstown PD, however, dismissed the groups claims, with then-police chief Rick McCubbin calling them a bunch of punks, and telling WAVE 3, They're trying to empower themselves by making that claim, intimidating people and using the fear factor that 'I'm so bad I killed a cop.. Really sad case. A policeman, as a public safety officer, could reasonably be expected to stop. Despite these accusations, neither Houck brother has ever been charged with any crimes related to the disappearance of Crystal Rogers, which they both deny any involvement in. I can't remember which pod I heard it on - it's been years. However, a few months before the shooting, Tommy told his wife, Sherry, that he felt like someone was following him. This, to me, is starting to get silly.". Kentucky State Police believe the person or persons inside a black Chevrolet Impala seen traveling north on U.S. 150 from Botland into Bardstown on the night of the murders are responsible for the crimes. It's a relatively small town and to have so many deaths and a disappearance, I assumed they all had to be related, but I have recently started to look at other ideas. I hope they get justice. It doesn't mean we can't change that title later. In the case of Kathy I'm wondering if her daughters boyfriend was looked into at all. . After exiting his police cruiser to investigate, he was ambushed. The other daughter was a person of interest because she was the only person who appeared to have had anything to gain from her mother and sisters death. On the day after Easter 2014, 48-year-old Kathy Netherland and her 16-year-old daughter, Samantha, were brutally murdered inside their home in Botland, just outside the Bardstown city limits.. (He was already in prison when this crime occurred, he is not a suspect.) Published: Feb. 27, 2023 at 7:24 PM PST. It's still getting investigated like if it were a murder investigation or homicide investigation, Kentucky State Police Trooper Jeff Gregory told WDRB. Agentsreportedlywere using a cadaver dog to search the subdivision and a Courier Journal photographer saw investigatorsusing a jackhammer on the driveway of a home. They lived in a white tin-roofed home at 5120 Springfield Road outside Bardstown near the intersection of State Routes 150 and 605. That's an important bit that is often overlooked! ), If you have information related to the murder of Tommy Ballard, call 1-800-Call-FBI or submit a tip at- https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/seeking-info/tommy-ballard. She went on to say her husband Tommy "was never going to give up for my daughter, and he was going to push, and I think people knew that. With a population of just over 14,000. and also boasts of being the Bourbon Capital of the World, due to the presence of six major whiskey distilleries in town. Kinda like those 2 kids who made a video after killing their classmate. "There's people in the community that have information but they're afraid to come forward,", . Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. ", "I just hope that I can handle that, when they come to me with that news, even though Ive waited for six years," shesaid. Is it possible that they have some sort of freeway shooter there? 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