A deadly romance or a police plot? Closing arguments in Karen Read murder trial approaching

DEDHAM, Massachusetts (AP) — Jurors in the lengthy murder trial of Karen Read must decide whether she was a callous friend who ran over her boyfriend, a Boston police officer, with her luxury SUV and drove away, or whether police framed her to cover up a brutal beating by his colleagues.

After nearly two months of testimony and a media storm fueled by true crime bloggers, attorneys were scheduled to make their closing arguments Tuesday to a jury tasked with sifting through widely differing accounts of the death of Boston police officer John O’Keefe.

Prosecutors allege Read struck O’Keefe with her Lexus SUV in January 2022, leaving him unconscious in the snow after a night of drinking. He died at a hospital after being found unconscious hours later outside the home of another Boston police officer in Canton who had been hosting a party. The cause of death was hypothermia and blunt force trauma, a medical examiner testified.

Their lawyers argue that Read was framed, claiming that O’Keefe was dragged outside after being beaten in the basement of his colleague Brian Albert’s Canton home and bitten by Albert’s dog.

Trial of girlfriend killed by police officer EDS NOTE: GRAPHIC CONTENT – An autopsy photo showing injuries to John O’Keefe’s arm is displayed during the trial of Karen Read, Friday, June 21, 2024, in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Massachusetts. Read, 44, is accused of hitting her boyfriend, a Boston police officer, with her SUV in the middle of a northeast storm and leaving him for dead after a night of drinking. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds, Pool) (Josh Reynolds/AP)

Read, a former adjunct professor at Bentley College, is charged with first-degree murder, manslaughter while under the influence of alcohol, and leaving the scene of a crime resulting in personal injury and death.

Three defense witnesses expressed doubts about the prosecution’s account on Monday.

Dr. Frank Sheridan, a retired medical examiner and former chief medical examiner for San Bernardino County in California, testified that O’Keefe would have had more bruising if he had been hit by the SUV. He also said scratch marks on O’Keefe’s arm could have been made by a dog and other injuries suggested an altercation.

Trial of killed police officer and girlfriend Retired forensic pathologist Dr. Frank Sheridan is questioned by defense attorney Elizabeth Little during the murder trial of Karen Read at Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Massachusetts, Monday, June 24, 2024. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool) (Pat Greenhouse/AP)

Two witnesses from an independent forensic consulting firm also suggested that some of the evidence did not match the prosecution’s account. Describing their detailed reconstructions, the witnesses said they concluded that damage to Read’s SUV, including a broken taillight, did not match O’Keefe’s injuries.

“You can’t deny the science and the physics,” Andrew Rentschler of the firm ARCCA once said as he described an analysis of the severity of injuries associated with different speeds of a vehicle like Read’s. ARCCA was hired by the U.S. Department of Justice as part of a federal investigation into state law enforcement’s handling of the Read case.

The defense claims investigators focused on Read because she was a “convenient outsider” who spared them from considering other suspects, including Albert and other police officers who were at the party.

Testimony began on April 29, after several days of jury selection. Prosecutors spent most of the trial systematically presenting evidence from the crime scene.

The defense called only a handful of witnesses, but used the time it spent cross-examining prosecution witnesses to ask questions about the investigation, including conflicts of interest and sloppy police work. The defense has been bemoaned by numerous supporters who often camp outside the courthouse.

Trial of girlfriend killed by police officer A photo of Karen Read’s Lexis SUV is seen during her trial at Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Massachusetts, Wednesday, June 5, 2024. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool) (Greg Derr/AP)

Karen Read SUV Video

Trial of girlfriend killed by police officer A copy of a text message between police officer Michael Proctor and his sister Courtney Elberg, discussing a thank-you gift, appears on a screen during the murder trial of Karen Read at Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Massachusetts, Wednesday, June 12, 2024. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool) (Greg Derr/AP)

Trial against Karen Read

Trial of girlfriend killed by police officer Evidence collected on Fairview Road in Canton is presented during the 20th day of Karen Read’s murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Massachusetts, on Wednesday, June 5, 2024. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool) (Greg Derr/AP)

Karen Read Evidence

The jury sees a video of CF McCarthy’s. The bar in front of the waterfall. Lally asks to pay attention to the glass. Read and O’Keefe are seen in the lower left corner.

Partial reconstruction of a taillight found at the crime scene

ADA Lally first shows pictures of broken taillight parts on the screen and asks Vallier if she recognizes them.

John O’Keefe’s T-Shirt John O’Keefe’s T-Shirt

John O’Keefe Sweatshirt John O’Keefe Sweatshirt

Jennifer McCabe is looking for Jennifer McCabe is looking for

Karen Read murder trial

Video by John O’Keefe Ring Doorbell Video by John O’Keefe Ring Doorbell

DNA evidence (Karen Read trial) DNA evidence (Karen Read trial)

Karen Read and Officer O’Keefe

Karen Read murder trial

Karen Read and Officer O’Keefe

Karen Read murder trial

Karen Read and Officer O’Keefe

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