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- Woman who allegedly killed officer boyfriend to go on trial again (abcnews.go.com)
Canton, MA – The retrial of Karen Read for the alleged killing of her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe, is set to begin Tuesday. The first trial, which concluded seven months ago, ended with a hung jury.
Read is accused of striking O’Keefe with her vehicle and leaving him to die during a blizzard in January 2022. She has consistently maintained her innocence and pleaded not guilty to charges of manslaughter while operating a motor vehicle under the influence, second-degree murder, and leaving the scene of an accident. While her lawyers contend the jury found her not guilty on the latter two charges during deliberations, the judge denied a motion to dismiss them, citing the lack of a formal acquittal announced in court.
Jury selection for the retrial, expected to last several weeks, commences Tuesday. The first trial, which garnered national attention, spanned over two months. Adding an intriguing layer to the proceedings, Read has brought an alternate juror from the first trial, Victoria George, a licensed attorney in Massachusetts, onto her defense team.
The case revolves around the events of the night of O’Keefe’s death. Read stated that after socializing with friends at two bars, she dropped O’Keefe off at a house where a gathering was taking place and then went home.
However, attendees of the gathering claimed O’Keefe never entered the house. Read later discovered O’Keefe’s body in a snowbank outside the residence.
An autopsy attributed his death to hypothermia and blunt force trauma to the head.
The prosecution alleges that an argument preceded the incident and that Read intentionally struck O’Keefe with her vehicle. Adding another twist to the case, testimony from the first trial led to the suspension of a Massachusetts State Police officer and a Canton Police officer for their communication during the investigation. The Canton officer is the brother of the man who hosted the gathering where O’Keefe’s body was found.
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- Woman who allegedly killed officer boyfriend to go on trial again (abcnews.go.com)