Mistrial Declared in Karen Read Murder Case Involving Death of Boston Police Officer Boyfriend – One America News Network
OAN’s James Meyers
2:09 PM – Monday, July 1, 2024
The Karen Read case has ended in a mistrial after five days of jury deliberation, but prosecutors said they will retry Read for the alleged murder of her Boston police boyfriend in January 2022.
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Judge Beverly Cannone ruled on Monday that the deadlocked jury in Dedham, Massachusetts, is not able to reach a unanimous verdict after jurors sent her notes on Friday and again on Monday that they disagree because of “deeply-held convictions that each of us carry.”
Additionally, the jury foreman, in his final note to the judge, said, “Our perspectives on the evidence are starkly divided. Some members of the jury firmly believe that the evidence surpasses the burden of proof establishing the elements of the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. Conversely others find the evidence fails to meet this standard and does not sufficiently establish the necessary elements of the charges.”
The foreman added “The deep division is not due to a lack of effort or diligence, but rather a sincere adherence to our individual principles and moral codes. To continue to deliberate would be futile and only serve to force us to compromise these deeply held beliefs.”
Judge Cannone’s response was very simple: “I’m not going to do that to you, folks. Your service is complete. I’m declaring a mistrial in this case. Thank you so much for your service.”
However, Norfolk District Attorney Michael W. Morrissey said that he will retry Read after the ruling was announced.
The trial had a large buzz around it, which included crowds of Read supporters who cheered her on outside of the court each day.
After the ruling was announced, the crowd cheered and screamed, yelling “free Karen Read!”
“This is what it looks like when you bring false charges against an innocent person. The Commonwealth did their worst,” Reed’s lawyer Alan Jackson said.
“They brought the weight of the state based on spurious charges, based on a compromised investigation, and investigators and compromised witnesses. This is what it looks like. Guess what? They failed.”
The jurors, which were composed of six men and six women, were tasked with deciding whether the 44-year-old Reed backed over Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe, with her Lexus SUV and then leaving him to die in the cold outside of a home in Canton on January 29, 2022.
The two-month long trial featured testimony from 74 witnesses. Read’s lawyers argued she is a victim of being framed by other law enforcement to cover up that O’Keefe was actually fatally beaten up by other officers.
Supporters of Read said the mistrial ruling should vindicate her and that prosecutors should drop the charges altogether.
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