By rejecting her petition, the justices have effectively cleared the way for her trial to continue. The court didn’t ask the prosecution to respond to the appeal, a sign the justices did not think there was a difficult legal issue at stake.
What is the Karen Read case about?
Prosecutors say Read backed her SUV into John O’Keefe, 46, after dropping him off at a party hosted by a fellow police officer and left him to die in the snow. Defense attorneys say she was a victim of a conspiracy involving the police and they plan, as they did in the first trial, to offer evidence pointing to the real killer. The case has attracted considerable interest in Massachusetts and beyond.
Read, 45, has been charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter and leaving the scene.
The second trial, which began opening statements and witness testimony April 22, has thus far looked similar to the first. It's being held in the same courthouse before the same judge, and dozens of Read’s passionate supporters are again rallying outside. The primary defense lawyers and many of the nearly 200 witnesses will also be the same.
A digital forensics specialist testifies
The trial’s second week began with digital forensics specialist Ian Whiffin testifying about data he analyzed from multiple cell phones connected to the case.
Whiffin is a former law enforcement officer who went on to work in mobile forensics in the private sector. He testified Monday about an internet search made by Jennifer McCabe, who was with Read the morning they found O'Keefe in the snow.
McCabe made a much-discussed web search about how long it takes to die in the cold. Read's lawyers have said the search happened hours before O'Keefe was discovered, which could implicate her rather than Read. McCabe has said she made the search later at Read's insistence after they found O'Keefe.
Whiffin said Monday the web search was not made at 2:27 a.m., before O'Keefe's body was found, like the defense has alleged. He also testified that location data on O'Keefe's phone was consistent with the device being near a flagpole on the lawn of the home from 12:32 a.m. onward. A text McCabe sent at that time telling O'Keefe where to park was recorded as having been read, but there was no further activity after that.
Whiffin also analyzed the battery temperature of O'Keefe's phone. He said it dropped from 72 degrees at 12:37 a.m. to 37 degrees at 6:14 a.m.
Read's defense has suggested O'Keefe was killed inside the home.
Jurors view the crime scene
On Friday, jurors traveled to Canton, where O'Keefe was found outside the home of Brian Albert on Jan. 29, 2022. Read's SUV was also parked there for the viewing.
Prosecutor Hank Brennan told jurors to view the scene from different vantage points and reminded them that it would have looked different at night, during a snowstorm. Defense attorney David Yannetti asked jurors to consider the distance between the home's windows and doors and the front lawn. Jurors also should take a good look at Read's vehicle, he said.
“Size it up,” he said. “Take it in.”
Doctor describes testing Read's blood alcohol level
Dr. Garrey Faller, former lab director at Good Samaritan Medical Center, testified Friday that Read's blood alcohol content was 93 milligrams per deciliter, or 0.093%, at 9 a.m. the day O'Keefe was found dead. The legal BAC limit in Massachusetts for driving is 0.08%.
In cross-examining Faller, Read's attorney suggested that the lab wasn't using the most reliable type of test or that the results could have been skewed by Read's medical conditions — anemia and multiple sclerosis.
“Our methodology is just as good,” he said.
That testimony came a day after prosecutors showed clips from interviews in which Read described pouring extra shots of alcohol into cocktails she deemed too weak but denying that she was driving recklessly the night O'Keefe died.
Friend describes O’Keefe and Read as an affectionate couple
O’Keefe’s close friend, Michael Camerano, testified Thursday about the relationship between O’Keefe and Read and their interactions the night he died. He said the couple greeted each other with affection at a Canton bar, and that O’Keefe put his arm around Read and kissed her.
“He certainly never told you or even suggested that he was thinking about or planning to break up with Karen, right?” defense attorney David Yannetti asked.
“No,” Camerano said.
“And during the month before John’s passing, that January of 2022, you observed their relationship in your presence to be normal, caring, and affectionate, right?” Yannetti asked.
“Yes,” Camerano said.
The defense blames a third party for O'Keefe's death
The defense's approach has been to portray the investigation into O'Keefe's death as shoddy and undermined by the close relationship investigators had with the police officers and other law enforcement agents who were at the house party.
Among the key witnesses they will call is former State Trooper Michael Proctor, who led the investigation but has since been fired after a disciplinary board found he sent crude and sexist texts about Read to his family and colleagues. He is also on the prosecution's witness list.
Proctor’s testimony was a key moment during the first trial, when the defense suggested his texts about Read and the case showed he was biased and had singled her out early in the investigation, ignoring other potential suspects.
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