The Karen Read trial live retrial has entered its third week in Dedham, Massachusetts. Read faces charges including second-degree murder in the January 2022 death of her boyfriend, Boston Police officer John O’Keefe.
Read pleaded not guilty to allegations she struck O’Keefe with her vehicle and left him during a blizzard outside a home in Canton. Her defense argues other individuals present at the home killed O’Keefe, and law enforcement officials worked to conceal the actual events and implicate Read.
Proceedings are underway, with Judge Beverly Cannone calling Court into session Monday. The current testimony involves Massachusetts State Police forensic scientist Hannah Knowles regarding Read's blood alcohol concentration. Defense attorney David Yannetti resumed cross-examination of Knowles on her findings.
Several differences mark this retrial from the first proceeding which ended in a hung jury and mistrial last year. Both the prosecution and defense teams have seen changes.
Special prosecutor Hank Brennan leads the state’s case. Brennan is known for defending mob boss James “Whitey” Bulger in a past trial. While first trial lead Adam Lally remains on the prosecution team, Brennan presented opening statements and has taken a more prominent role.
The defense team added New York-based attorney Robert Alessi, whose website notes his background in scientific and technical matters, particularly with expert witnesses. Victoria George, an alternate juror in the first trial, has also joined Read’s defense.
A notable difference involves Read’s public comments since the mistrial. Read did not testify in the first trial but has since spoken in interviews with TV reporters, in Vanity Fair, and an Investigation Discovery documentary series. Prosecutors have introduced clips of these interviews as evidence.
Prosecutors are already bringing Karen Read’s interviews to the jury to support witness accounts and challenge defense claims, such as Read’s statement in the documentary, "This is my version of testifying. Doing this film is my testimony.” During opening statements, Brennan played a video where Read speculated about hitting O’Keefe.
The lead investigator in the case, Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor, was fired between the two trials. Proctor admitted during the first trial to sending inappropriate texts about Read, according to CNN affiliate WCVB. He was fired in March for violating department policies. The defense plans to focus on Proctor’s conduct.
“You’ll see from the evidence in this case that this case carries a malignancy … a cancer that cannot be cut out, a cancer that cannot be cured,” attorney Alan Jackson said. “And that cancer has a name. His name is Michael Proctor.”
