Karen Read was recently acquitted by a jury that found her not guilty in the trial related to her Boston cop boyfriend John O’ Keefe’s death. This was a re-trial where she was found not guilty, with the first trial seeing a hung jury. Read was accused of ramming her SUV at her boyfriend outside Boston, outside a house party where O’Keefe’s fellow officers were present.
What are the key takeaways from the trial?
The trial lasted for a significantly long time, and Read was primarily charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter, and leaving the scene of a deadly collision by prosecutors. However, her lawyers were able to successfully defend her, and claimed that no such collision took place between Read and O’Keefe that resulted in his death.
Moreover, there were some interesting aspects in the case right from the start, which included the claim by Read’s attorneys that a group of local and state cops were shielding one of their own in this case and framing the woman instead. Even the lead investigator in the matter, Michael Proctor, was fired from the Massachusetts State Police after the first trial for misconduct, as he was sent some inappropriate texts to friends, family and co-workers about the case just hours after he began investigating. His texts even included claims that he wanted Read to pay.
An ABC News report on this trial reads, “Defense lawyers portrayed the case as riddled with errors, missteps, and malfeasance. They emphasized that the taillight fragments were not found immediately and argued that police had time to take them from Read’s impounded vehicle and plant them.
“They also presented video evidence that Read’s taillight could have been damaged instead when she hit O’Keefe’s car at home later that morning,” the report continued.