Karen Read's second murder trial gets underway with opening statements and testimony
DEDHAM, MA − Opening statements and witness testimony began April 22 in the second murder trial of Karen Read, who is accused of hitting her boyfriend, a Boston police officer, with her SUV and leaving him for dead in a snowstorm.
Defense attorneys for Read, 45, say she was framed for O'Keefe's death in January 2022.
After ten days of questioning hundreds of prospective jurors, jury selection ended April 15 with nine women and nine men chosen. Judge Beverly Cannone said the trial could take six to eight weeks.
The divisive case has attracted attention from YouTubers, TikTokers and internet sleuths and become the subject of podcasts, movies and televisions shows.
Cannone barred supporters of either side from demonstrating within 200 feet of the courthouse, prompting some of Read's supporters to sue Cannone over the order. A federal judge ruled against Read's supporters on April 14, meaning protesters will have to stay away from the courthouse.
Cannone acknowledged the strong feelings on both sides of the case as she delivered preliminary instructions to the jury and told jurors to only consider the evidence presented in court.
"Ms. Read starts this trial presumed to be innocent," Cannone said. "It is only the jury, you folks, who can decide whether the prosecution has proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt."
Testimony begins in Karen Read retrial with body being found
Two witnesses took the stand on the first day of Karen Read's retrial. Kerry Roberts, a friend of O'Keefe, said she received a frantic call from Read at 5 a.m. on Jan. 29, 2022. She said Read screamed "Kerry, Kerry, Kerry, John’s dead," and hung up.
In a subsequent call, Read said he might have been hit by a snow plow after a night of heavy drinking, so Roberts called police and local hospitals to see if any such accidents had been reported. Roberts said when she met Read and another woman to search O'Keefe's house,she parked behind Read's Lexus and saw a piece missing from her taillight.
The group then drove to the home of a fellow Boston police officer who Read and O'Keefe had been drinking with the night before, and as they approached, Read exclaimed "there he is, there he is," Roberts testified. Read ran directly to a mound of snow, which Roberts said she later realized was about the size of a body.
Paramedic testifies Read said 'I hit him' repeatedly
When Timothy Nuttall, firefighter and paramedic, arrived on scene, he said, O'Keefe was cold and exhibited no signs of life. As he and other first responders tended to O'Keefe, Nuttall said he heard Read, who had blood on her face, say "I hit him, I hit him, I hit him."
Defense attorney Alan Jackson repeatedly pressed Nuttall about his memory of the incident, called his testimony "inconsistent" and questioned why Nuttall previously testified that Read only said "I hit him" twice. In response to questions from Jackson, Nuttall agreed that injuries to O'Keefe's face could have been caused by a punch to the face.
Defense argues 'there was no collision with John O'Keefe'
Jackson started his opening arguments by telling jurors the evidence would show "there was no collision with John O'Keefe."
Jackson said the investigation was riddled with errors, bias, incompetence and deceit from the start, citing a text message from now-fired Massachusetts State Police investigator Michael Proctor to a friend, who asked if the owner of the home where O'Keefe was found would face any backlash.
"Nope. He's a Boston cop too," responded Proctor, who was fired for unrelated reasons.
"That quote defines the lack of integrity of the Commonwealth's entire case," Jackson said.
Jackson painted a different picture of the night, saying video footage shows the couple engaging in loving behavior, not arguing as the prosecution suggested.
He said facts "unequivocally" show that O'Keefe went into the home of Albert that evening, causing Read to grow increasingly frustrated as she waited outside in her SUV. He said the messages left by Read on O'Keefe's phone prove she was angry he never came back outside and had no idea he was unable to answer.
Jackson said the evidence will show the injuries on O'Keefe's arm were caused by an animal, like the German shepherd owned by the Albert family that they rehomed shortly after O'Keefe's death. The scientific evidence and medical evidence suggest that O'Keefe was injured somewhere warm and then moved into the cold, he said.
"No broken bones. No contusions. ... No internal injuries. Not even a bruise. Nothing consistent with a car accident," Jackson said.
Jackson also pointed to several pieces of evidence that could be used to support the defense theory that Read was framed. He said Albert's sister-in-law, who was at Albert's home that evening, searched "hos long to die in cold" at 2:27 a.m. and later deleted the Google search, despite claiming to have learned about O'Keefe being missing hours later.
Jurors will see video evidence of Read damaging her tail light not by hitting O'Keefe, but by backing into his SUV in his driveway while leaving to search for him that morning, Jackson said. He said evidence will show there were more than a dozen first responders and witnesses at the scene when O'Keefe was found, yet not one included in their report at the time that they heard Read say "I hit him."
"This case is the very definition of reasonable doubt," Jackson said.
Prosecution says evidence will show Read intentionally hit O'Keefe
Special prosecutor Hank Brennan, who was hired by the Norfolk County District Attorney's office to handle Read's second trial, told jurors in his opening statement that Read was drunk and angry when she purposely put her Lexus SUV in reverse and struck O'Keefe, leaving him mortally wounded in the cold on the lawn of a home belonging to fellow Boston cop, Albert.
Brennan said DNA evidence, data from Read and O'Keefe's cell phones and Read's own statements prove she was responsible for O'Keefe's death. "This case will come down to the science and the data," Brennan said.
The prosecutor recounted the events of O'Keefe's death starting from the perspective of Canton firefighter and paramedic Anthony Flematti who responded to a call of cardiac arrest just after 6 a.m. on Jan. 29, 2022. Brennan said the firefighters who tried to save O'Keefe heard these words from Read: "I hit him. I hit him. I hit him."
Brennan said cell phone data shows exactly when and where O'Keefe moved before taking his final steps at 12:31 a.m. He said cell phone data also shows Read called O'Keefe 40 times, all of which went unanswered, and left a message telling O'Keefe she hated him.
Just before 5 a.m., Brennan said Read called a friend and said O'Keefe never came home. Read and two friends ultimately went back to Albert's house, where they found O'Keefe.
"The evidence will make clear that she knew he was there. She did not call 911. ... She left him," Brennan said.
Police found one of O'Keefe's shoes, pieces of Read's broken taillight and a broken cocktail glass at the scene, Brennan said. He said O'Keefe's DNA was later found on the back of Read's SUV.
Prosecutors are not arguing that Read intended to kill O'Keefe, Brennan said, but that she intentionally struck him, which caused his death. He played a clip of Read from an interview in which she wondered if she could have clipped O'Keefe.
"Stay true to the evidence. It will lead you to the truth," Brennan told jurors.
Karen Read asks U.S. Supreme Court to toss 2 of 3 charges against her
As the retrial got underway, Read's attorneys also asked the nation's highest court to drop two of the three charges against her. The defense said jurors in the first trial unanimously agreed to acquit her of second-degree murder and leaving the scene of a crash causing injury or death, and retrying her on all but the third and final charge would constitute double jeopardy.
On April 9, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson denied Read's emergency petition asking the court to pause her retrial pending a decision. A response to Read's petition to drop the charges is due by May 5, according to the Supreme Court's website.
What happened during the first trial?
During Read’s first trial, it took five days to select 19 jurors and alternates from a pool of 401 people. More than 65 witnesses were called, including family members, forensic experts and police investigators.
Prosecutors alleged Read hit O'Keefe with her car and left him outside the home of a fellow Boston police officer after the couple got into an argument. They cited evidence including a broken taillight on which O'Keefe's DNA was found, witnesses accounts of Read repeatedly saying "I hit him" at the scene and angry voicemail messages she left accusing O'Keefe of infidelity the morning he died.
Meanwhile, the defense claimed Read dropped O'Keefe off and then a fight broke out inside the home, pointing the finger at several other potential suspects. Read's attorneys cited O'Keefe's injuries, which they say could have been caused by a beating and animal attack, a misspelled Google search made by a friend of O'Keefe's asking how long it takes to die in the cold and police missteps in the investigation as evidence of a cover-up.
The first trial lasted nine weeks. After five days of deliberation, that jury remained deadlocked.
How will Karen Read's second murder trial be different?
While Read's attorneys will be allowed to suggest alternative suspects, Cannone ruled they cannot cast blame on one of the people they pointed the finger at in the first trial, citing insufficient evidence.
"It'll definitely be different in its execution, in how each side sort of executes its strategy, but the basic narrative will be be the same," said Daniel Medwed, a professor of law and criminal justice at Northeastern University.
The prosecution's witness list includes many of the same people who testified at the first trial, as well as a new witness, Read's father. Both the prosecution and defense teams have also added to their line up.
Brennan, a private defense attorney who represented James 'Whitey' Bulger, was hired as a special prosecutor by the Norfolk County District Attorney's office to try the case. He will be assisted by former lead prosecutor Adam Lally and Laura McLaughlin.
The defense added two attorneys: Robert Alessi and Victoria George, who is a former alternate juror from Read's first trial. David Yannetti, Elizabeth Little and Alan Jackson, who has represented Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey, also remain on Read's team.
Read to face wrongful death lawsuit
After Read's second murder trial concludes, she will have to face a civil suit brought by O'Keefe's estate and its representative, his brother.
Read's attorneys filed motioned to stay the civil case until the criminal case is resolved. Judge William White Jr. granted a stay of Read's deposition and any other discovery directly related to her.
Contributing: Christopher Cann, Karissa Waddick and Phaedra Trethan, Paste BN; Peter Blandino, Jessica Trufant and David R. Smith, The Patriot Ledger