DEDHAM, Mass. (Court TV) — After 23 days of testimony and 38 witnesses, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has rested its case against Karen Read, and now her defense has begun to present its case to the jury tasked with deciding her fate.
Karen Read listens to testimony on Wednesday, May 28, 2025. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)
Read is standing trial for the murder of her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe, who was found dead in the snow outside of a friend’s home after a night out drinking. Prosecutors say Read hit O’Keefe with her Lexus SUV and left him to die, while her defense maintains her innocence and has argued she is the victim of a wide-ranging cover-up. Read’s first trial, in 2024, ended in a mistrial.
The sixth week of Read’s trial was shortened by the Memorial Day holiday, but had no shortage of drama as the prosecution’s final witness faced tough cross-examination.
Expert: Read Pulled Forward 34 Feet, Reversed 53 Feet
Dr. Judson Welcher, the Commonwealth’s final witness, was presented as an expert in crash reconstruction. He told the jury, “I have no dog in this fight. I don’t, quite frankly, care. What I’m trying to do is do a good engineering job, look at the data, and draw sound principles and conclusions from the data.”…