Crime
The state’s highest court has issued its long-awaited decision on Karen Read’s appeal to drop two of her charges.
The state’s highest court weighed in on Karen Read’s case Tuesday, refusing to drop two of her charges, even after defense attorneys argued jurors in her first trial unanimously but unofficially agreed to acquit her of murder and leaving the scene of a fatal accident in the death of her boyfriend, John O’Keefe.
“The jury clearly stated during deliberations that they had not reached a unanimous verdict on any of the charges and could not do so,” the Supreme Judicial Court’s opinion reads. “Only after being discharged did some individual jurors communicate a different supposed outcome, contradicting their prior notes. Such posttrial disclosures cannot retroactively alter the trial’s outcome — either to acquit or to convict.”
Boston.com has contacted Read’s lawyers for comment on the decision.
Prosecutors allege that after a night of bar-hopping, the 44-year-old backed her SUV into O’Keefe and left him to die outside another Boston officer’s home in Canton on Jan. 29, 2022. But Read’s lawyers have alleged a law enforcement coverup, suggesting instead that O’Keefe entered the home for an afterparty and was beaten, attacked by the family’s dog, and ultimately dumped outside.
Read has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, manslaughter while operating a motor vehicle under the influence, and leaving the scene of a fatal accident. Her first trial ended with a hung jury last July, and she’s due to stand trial again in April.
However, Read’s lawyers said they began hearing from jurors the day after the mistrial, “indicating in no uncertain terms that the jury had a firm and unwavering 12-0 agreement that Ms. Read is not guilty of two of the three charges against her, including the charge of murder in the second degree.”
While the defense argued double jeopardy prohibits prosecutors from retrying Read on those counts, the judge overseeing the case wasn’t convinced and denied their motion to dismiss the charges. Read’s team argued their appeal before the SJC in November, also pushing for a post-trial hearing to confirm jurors’ reports.
Prosecutors, meanwhile, argued the lack of a public verdict meant Read was not acquitted on any charge. The SJC concurred, asserting Judge Beverly Cannone was correct in denying Read’s motion to dismiss and her lawyers’ request for a post-trial inquiry.
Read’s retrial is scheduled to begin April 1.
Boston.com Today
Sign up to receive the latest headlines in your inbox each morning.
