Read pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, and leaving the scene of a collision resulting in death. The case is currently being deliberated by the jury.
The prosecution claimed that Read hit O'Keefe with her car and fled, but the defense argued that Read was being unfairly targeted by local law enforcement. After weeks of testimony, a mistrial was declared on Monday due to a deadlock among the jury members.
Timeline
On January 28, 2022, in Canton, Massachusetts, a group gathered for a Friday night out despite the heavy snowstorm. Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe enjoyed drinks with his girlfriend, Karen Read, as well as friends and coworkers like Officer Brian Albert and his sister-in-law Jennifer McCabe at C.F. McCarthy's bar.
On January 29, 2022, Read drove O'Keefe to Brian Albert's home where a group planned to meet after leaving the bar. The prosecution claims Read had been drinking before giving O'Keefe a ride past midnight. Witnesses saw a dark SUV outside the home between 12:15 and 12:45, but nobody entered. Despite texting O'Keefe multiple times, Read did not receive any responses to her last four messages.
On the morning of January 29, 2022, between 4 and 5 a.m., O'Keefe's niece reached out to Jennifer McCabe when O'Keefe did not return home or answer his phone. Kerry Roberts, a friend, joined McCabe and Read to search for him. They found O'Keefe lying unresponsive in the snow on Albert's lawn around 6 a.m. First responders were alerted and O'Keefe was pronounced dead at Good Samaritan Hospital at 7:59 a.m.
On January 31, 2022, the results of O'Keefe's autopsy showed that he died from blunt impact injuries to the head and hypothermia. The medical examiner stated that there were no clear signs of a physical altercation or fight leading to his death.
On February 1, 2022, Karen Read was taken into police custody and accused of causing a fatal car accident. She was charged with motor vehicle homicide, manslaughter, and fleeing the scene of the collision. The next day, she appeared in Stoughton District Court and entered a plea of not guilty.
John O’Keefe and Karen Read
O'Keefe, a 46-year-old Boston Police Department officer, passed away on January 29, 2022. He had been in a relationship with Read, an equity analyst at Fidelity Investments, for two years. Norfolk County Assistant District Attorney Adam Lally noted that there were issues in their relationship leading up to O'Keefe's death, which seemed to escalate during a trip to Aruba over New Year's.
Prosecution Perspective
Lally mentioned that the couple had a tumultuous relationship and accused Read of hitting O'Keefe with her Lexus SUV outside Albert's house, resulting in severe injuries. The prosecutor claimed that Read left O'Keefe injured and alone, leading to his death. Despite Read's statement that she dropped O'Keefe off at Albert's house, no one at the afterparty remembered seeing him there. Witnesses only saw the SUV arrive and depart without anyone getting out, causing confusion among those present.
O'Keefe's hair was discovered on the bumper of the vehicle, and his DNA was found on the taillight, according to forensic testing. Also, investigators found traces of a spilled cocktail on the bumper.
Defense Perspective
Read's lawyers are claiming that she was falsely accused of a murder and that evidence against her was planted. The defense team also argued that during the afterparty, O'Keefe was attacked, presumably by the Alberts' German shepherd, and left outside.
The defense team argued that the investigation into the case was biased due to the close connections between authorities and Albert's family, with his brother being a police officer. They claimed that the focus on Read as an "outsider" was a way to divert attention from the real issues. The defense also pointed out Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor as a key figure in the biased investigation.
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