Who is Karen Read and why is she on trial again? Catch up on the murder case

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A broken taillight, series of Google searches and supposed confession are just some of the disputed pieces of evidence at the forefront of Karen Read's highly-publicized second murder trial.

Read, 45, is accused of killing her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe, in a Massachusetts suburb on Jan. 29, 2022. Prosecutors allege Read hit O'Keefe with her SUV after a night of drinking, while her defense claims a cover up by some of O'Keefe's fellow officers.

Last year, Read's first trial ended in a hung jury. The second trial against her began in April and is expected to last around six weeks, according to the judge.

Paste BN is covering Read's second trial with daily updates. However, for those just tuning in, here's what to know about the case.

Who is Karen Read?

Karen Read is the former girlfriend of John O'Keefe, who she is accused of killing in January 2022.

Before being embroiled in legal proceedings, Read had a career in financial services, according to The Patriot Ledger, part of the Paste BN Network.

She earned undergraduate and master’s degrees in finance at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts, and later worked as an adjunct professor at the college. She also worked for Fidelity Investments, but was fired from both positions when she was arrested.

Read grew up in Blacksburg, Virginia, and Taunton, Massachusetts. At the time of O'Keefe's death, she lived in Mansfield, Massachusetts, which is about 30 miles southeast of Boston near the Rhode Island border.

She is charged with is manslaughter, motor vehicle homicide and leaving the scene of a deadly crash.

Who was John O'Keefe?

John O'Keefe was a 16-year veteran of the Boston Police Department. He grew up in Braintree, Massachusetts, which is about 12 miles south of Boston.

O'Keefe, 46, graduated from Northeastern University and earned a master's degree in criminal justice from the University of Massachusetts, according to his obituary.

In his obituary, O'Keefe is described as "a devoted son, brother, uncle, godfather, cousin and friend."

Outside of his career, O'Keefe was the legal guardian of his niece and nephew. His sister and her husband died within two months of each other in 2014, and O'Keefe raised them after that.

At the time of his death, O'Keefe was living in Canton, a suburb about 20 miles southeast of Boston. He died outside a friend's home in the town on Jan. 29, 2022.

Karen Read trial updates: Testimony continues after angry voicemails played in court

What happened in Karen Read's first trial?

Read was arrested for O'Keefe's death on Feb. 1, 2022. She has maintained her innocence.

During the first trial, her defense argued that other police officers who saw O'Keefe that night are complicit in his death and trying to frame Read for the murder.

They also said police officers looking into O'Keefe's death botched their investigation — the lead investigator, Michael Proctor, was fired by the Massachusetts State Police in March tying back to misconduct in the case.

The prosecution, on the other hand, painted the picture of Read as an angry girlfriend whose strained relationship with O'Keefe led her to kill him.

Here are the key dates in the first trial against her:

• April 16, 2024: Jury selection began
• April 29, 2024: Opening statements delivered, testimony begins
• June 21, 2024: Prosecution rested its case
• June 24, 2024: Defense rested its case
• June 25, 2024: Closing arguments delivered, jury begins deliberations
• July 1, 2024: Judge declares mistrial after jury says they are "deeply divided"

Key evidence in Karen Read murder trial

Several pieces of evidence in the case — and whether they incriminate Read — have come under debate in both the court of law and public opinion.

While not comprehensive, here are some of the key pieces of evidence in Read's trial:

• Google search
  • Read and two of O'Keefe's friends, including Jennifer McCabe, found his body on the front lawn of the home where he allegedly died on Jan. 29, 2022. Phone records show McCabe Googled "hos (sic) long to die in cold" that morning. McCabe says Read asked her to search it when they found O'Keefe's body; the defense says she searched it hours earlier.
• Read's alleged confession
  • Several people who were on the scene where O'Keefe's body was found, including McCabe and a paramedic, have testified in both trials that Read said "I hit him, I hit him, I hit him." However, Read — and McCabe's previous testimony to a grand jury — says she instead asked "Could I have hit him?"
• Broken taillight
  • Pieces of Read's taillight were found on the scene where O'Keefe's body was located, investigators said. The prosecution says they broke when Read allegedly backed her SUV into O'Keefe, killing him. The defense argues the taillight may have been planted at the scene to frame Read.
• O'Keefe's injuries
  • While prosecutors say O'Keefe died from being hit by Read's SUV, the defense says other cops beat him up and framed her for his killing. He had marks on his arms resembling that of an animal attack, the defense claims. Both sides are set to call witnesses in the second trial to testify to possible causes of the cuts.

What has happened in Karen Read's second trial so far?

Read's second trial began in early April, and the first witnesses testified on April 23.

The judge in the case, Beverly Cannone, instructed jurors that the trial could take 6-8 weeks.

So far, witnesses that have testified in the second trial include McCabe, O'Keefe's mother, police officers and paramedics involved in the case.

How to watch Karen Read's trial live

CourtTV has a live feed available to watch of the Read proceedings from Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Massachusetts. Proceedings begin daily at 9 a.m. ET.

Karen Read case spurs slew of documentaries, interviews

In addition to The Patriot Ledger and Paste BN's coverage, there are several documentaries and projects recapping Read's case.

• A docuseries on Investigation Discovery titled "A Body in the Snow" aired in March. It follows Read's first trial, even including interviews with her — she said participating in the filming "is my testimony."
• Read was interviewed on NBC's "Dateline" and ABC's "20/20" in episodes that were released last year.
• Read also gave an extensive, two-part interview to Vanity Fair last year.

Melina Khan is a trending reporter covering national news for Paste BN. She can be reached at MKhan@gannett.com.