Jury Can't Decide on Woman Accused of Killing Cop Beau

UPDATE Jun 28, 2024 4:05 PM CDT

Jurors in the Karen Read murder trial told the judge on Friday that they've been unable to reach a unanimous verdict. A foreperson told Judge Beverly Cannone the jury was stuck despite an "exhaustive review of the evidence and our diligent consideration of all disputed evidence," the AP reports. Cannone told the six men and six women to take a lunch break and try again. Later in the afternoon, she sent them home for the weekend, saying, "Clear your heads, we'll start fresh on Monday." Groups of demonstrators gathered outside the Massachusetts courthouse calling for conviction and acquittal were kept apart by police. "A hung jury, that would be terrible," said a supporter of Read's.

Jun 26, 2024 9:00 AM CDT

The final arguments have been made. Now, it's up to a jury of six women and six men to determine whether Karen Read drunkenly struck her boyfriend with a vehicle in the early hours of Jan. 29, 2022, as prosecutors claim. Defense lawyers contend law enforcement instead tried to frame Read for the murder of one of their own; John O'Keefe was a 16-year veteran of the Boston Police Department. The latest on the second-degree murder trial that has gripped Massachusetts:

• Prosecution's case: Prosecutors said Read consumed nine drinks over three hours before driving with O'Keefe to an after-party at the Canton home of another police officer, per the Daily Beast. They said when O'Keefe exited the SUV outside the home, Read drunkenly struck him with the vehicle, then drove home, leaving party guests unaware anything had happened.

• Possible admission: Vehicle data showed Read put her vehicle in reverse "at 24.2 miles per hour for 62.5 feet," prosecutor Adam Lally said during closing arguments on Tuesday, per CNN. Prosecutors said pieces of Read's broken taillight were found outside the home. First responders also testified about hearing Read say, "I hit him."
• Troubled relationship: Witnesses reported hearing the couple engaged in loud arguments before that night, per CNN. Prosecutors claimed moments after Read struck O'Keefe, she left him a voicemail saying, "John, I f---ing hate you!"
• Counterargument: Defense lawyers said Read only dropped off O'Keefe, who they claim was beaten inside the home then dumped outside. Officers later conspired to frame Read, who went out to search for O'Keefe the next morning and was the one to find him unconscious with head injuries on the home's snow-covered lawn, defense attorney Alan Jackson said Tuesday.

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• Cop texts: Jackson cited text messages from Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor, a lead investigator. He called Read a "whack job" and noted he found "no nudes" while searching her phone for evidence, per WCVB. Proctor brought a "stench" to "this case and this investigation," Jackson said, per CNN.
• 'Evidence manipulation': The defense raised questions about the alleged collection of evidence using red plastic cups and the decision to flip video of Read's SUV to a mirror image. Jackson said evidence was intentionally manipulated by police to protect law enforcement.
• The charges: Read, 44, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, manslaughter while driving under the influence, and leaving the scene of a crime. The charges carry a maximum penalty of life in prison, 20 years in prison, and 10 years in prison, respectively, per WCVB.

(More murder trial stories.)