Karen Read walks free after judge declares mistrial when jury failed to reach verdict in murder case
Karen Read was on trial for January 2022 death of her boyfriend John O’Keefe
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A mistrial has been declared in Karen Read’s high-profile case after the jury was unable to reach a unanimous decision following eight weeks of testimony and five days of deliberations.
Read, 44, smiled and hugged her family as she she walked out of the courtroom on Monday afternoon.
Read was on trial after being accused of killing her Boston police officer boyfriend John O’Keefe in 2022 by hitting him with her SUV and leaving him to die outside in a snowstorm, a case that drew widespread attention thanks to true crime fanatics, conspiracy theorists and Read’s pink-shirted supporters.
Her two-month-long trial came to an end when the judge declared a mistrial drawing cheers from her supporters who waited in the rain outside the Massachusetts courthouse.
Prosecutors said they plan to retry the case. Judge Beverly Cannone scheduled a status conference for July 22 at Norfolk Superior Court.
“First, we thank the O'Keefe family for their commitment and dedication to this long process. They maintained sight of the true core of this case - to find justice for John O'Keefe,” the district attorney's office said in a statement. “The Commonwealth intends to re-try the case.”
Read’s defense attorney Alan Jackson told reporters outside the courthouse that prosecutors had relied on compromised investigators and a compromised investigation.
“We will not stop fighting,” he said.
Norfolk County Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone made the decision to declare the mistrial after the jury of six men and six women remained deadlocked Monday afternoon.
“Our perspectives on the evidence are starkly divided,” the jury wrote in a note to Judge Cannone on Monday. “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.”
Just before lunch, the jury claimed to be an an impasse, but the judge sent them out again and were told to continue deliberating.
“Despite our commitment to the duty entrusted to us, we find ourselves deeply divided by fundamental differences in our opinions and state of mind,” the first note read. “The divergence in our views are not rooted in a lack of understanding or effort, but deeply held convictions that each of us carry, ultimately leading to a point where consensus is unattainable.”
The jury deliberated all last week after receiving the case on Tuesday. By Friday, they claimed to be deadlocked in their decision as to whether or not Read was responsible for killing O’Keefe.
Read was charged with second-degree murder, motor vehicle manslaughter while driving under the influence and leaving the scene of a collision causing death. She had denied the charges.
During the trial, the state argued Read ran over O’Keefe, killing him after their relationship deteriorated. But the defense claimed O’Keefe was killed in a fight with others and Read has been framed for the murder.
Prosecutors argued that Read dropped O’Keefe, 46, off at a house party in Canton hosted by fellow officer, Brian Albert, after a night of drinking, struck him while making a three-point turn and drove away, leaving him to die in the snow.
She allegedly returned hours later to find O’Keefe’s snow-covered body in the front year and was heard repeatedly shouting “I hit him, I hit him” as first responders were on the scene, witnesses have testified.
But Read’s defense team claimed that she was framed by someone who beat O’Keefe to death at Albert’s home and that he was bitten by the family dog.
They say the homeowner’s relationship with local and state police tainted their investigation.
“Ladies and gentlemen, there was a cover-up in this case, plain and simple,” Jackson said during closing arguments.
The defense also argued that investigators focused on Read because she was a “convenient outsider” who saved them from having to consider other suspects, including Albert and other law enforcement officers who were at the party.
The jury of six men and six women deliberated behind closed doors in Norfolk County Superior Court, while a “sidewalk jury” of true crime bloggers and Read supporters gathered outside for days.
Many were drawn to the case because of an online blog run by Aidan Kearney, aka Turtleboy, who has relentlessly questioned the prosecution. He has also been accused of harassing witnesses. Kearney was charged with witness intimidation and conspiracy, which he denies.