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By James Bickerton
News Reporter
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When Does Karen Read's Retrial Start?
The retrial of Karen Read, accused of murdering her Boston police officer boyfriend John O'Keefe by ramming him with her vehicle, is due to begin on April 1. Read worked as a financial analyst and adjunct professor at Bentley University.
Newsweek contacted Read's attorney Alan Jackson for comment via online inquiry form.
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What Is Karen Read Accused of?
Read has been charged with second degree murder, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and leaving the scene of a collision that resulted in death. She has pleaded not guilty to all three charges.
Prosecutors claim Read crashed her vehicle into O'Keefe, then fled the scene, after the pair had been drinking at two bars on January 28 2022. However Read's team strongly dispute this account, and claim that O'Keefe went to a colleague's house after their drinks where there was an altercation, after which his body was discovered outside in the snow.
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Why Is There a Retrial?
Read's first trial began on April 16 2024, but on July 1 it was declared a mistrial after the jury remained deadlocked on the fifth day of their deliberations.
In a letter to presiding Judge Beverly Cannone the jury said: "Despite our exhaustive review of the evidence and our diligent consideration of all disputed evidence, we have been unable to reach a unanimous verdict."
Speaking after court on June 18, Read said: "There is no case against me. It's smoke and mirrors, and it's going through my private life and trying to contrive a motive that was never there."
Will Fired Prosecutor Michael Proctor Testify?
Trooper Michael Proctor was the lead investigator on Read's case but he was fired from the Massachusetts State Police after it emerged he had sent private text messages calling her a "whack job," "c***," and joking that he had been searching her phone for nude photographs.
An investigation concluded Proctor had sent "derogatory, defamatory and disparaging and/ or inappropriate text messages" concerning Read during the investigation, as well as having sent confidential information related to the case to people outside of law enforcement and consuming alcohol on duty.
Proctor is on the list of prospective witnesses that the defense submitted to the court this week ahead of Read's retrial.
What People Are Saying
Speaking after her first trial, Read said: "We know who did it. We know. And we know who spearheaded this cover-up. You all know. I tried to save his life. I tried to save his life at 6 in the morning, I was covered in his blood. I was the only one trying to save his life."
In a letter to the judge the jury at Read's first trial said: "Our perspectives on the evidence are starkly divided. The deep division is not due to a lack of effort or diligence but rather a sincere adherence to our individual principles and moral convictions. To continue to deliberate would be futile."
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