Michael Proctor’s police car, weapon and equipment seized during investigation – NBC Boston

A few days after his dismissal from service, the Massachusetts State Police will decide whether the lead investigator in the murder trial of Karen Read faces further penalties.

Just hours after Read’s trial ended without a verdict, state police announced that Trooper Michael Proctor had been transferred from the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office. They said a duty status hearing would determine his employment status during the internal investigation.

The hearing is scheduled to take place Monday at state police headquarters in Framingham, officials said Friday.

“In any State Police disciplinary proceeding, the officer will be subjected to a duty status hearing, which will result in the officer either remaining on full duty, being placed on restricted duty, or being suspended with or without pay,” a police spokesman wrote in a statement.

Michael Proctor, the lead investigator in John O’Keefe’s death, has been relieved of duty by the Massachusetts State Police. We’re examining how this development may impact the Karen Read case and others.

After being transferred to Troop H, police said Proctor was currently receiving pay but was not actively working. His car, gun and equipment were taken away from him, which is standard practice.

Proctor’s testimony at the trial of Read – who is accused of murdering her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe, in 2022 – sparked fierce and widespread criticism.

During the investigation, Proctor sent vulgar and degrading text messages about Read to his family, friends and fellow officers, including his superiors at the State Police.

“She’s a crazy… bitch,” Proctor said as he read the texts on the witness stand.

In the texts, he made derogatory comments about Read’s health and said he had “not found any nude photos so far” when searching Read’s phone.

When a friend said they were “sure the homeowner is going to get some shit,” Proctor replied, “Nah, the homeowner is also a Boston cop.”

Would Judge Beverly Cannone preside over a retrial in the Karen Read case? What might be different next time for the prosecution and defense? We look back at the trial that ended in a hung jury this week.

Proctor was appointed lead investigator after state police were called in because Albert has a brother who works for the Canton Police Department. But Proctor’s own connection to other witnesses was questioned at trial. Proctor admitted he has a close relationship with his sister Courtney, who is friends with Julie Albert, the homeowner’s sister-in-law.

In a text message to his sister, Proctor said of Read: “Hopefully she kills herself.”

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During his investigation into Read, Interim Colonel Jack Mawn of the Massachusetts State Police took a strong stance against the officer’s actions.

“Misconduct in any form will not be tolerated by the Massachusetts State Police,” Mawn said. “I condemn these comments in the strongest possible terms.”

On the witness stand, Proctor said his words were “unprofessional and regrettable” but claimed they had no impact on the integrity of the investigation.

After Proctor’s testimony, legal expert Michael Coyne told NBC10 Boston that it was “probably fatal to the government’s position, especially given that his superiors were involved in this exchange and did not reprimand him in any way, or even prevent the conversation from continuing.”

“The fact is that it brings all law enforcement agencies into disrepute in this case, and many law enforcement agencies have not covered themselves in glory,” Coyne continued. “So I fear that this has probably put the Commonwealth in a very fatal position.”

Security expert Todd McGhee, a former Massachusetts State Police officer, said if the POST Commission puts him on the Brady list, all of his testimony would be essentially “useless.”

After a mistrial was declared, security expert Todd McGhee, a former Massachusetts State Police trooper, weighed in on whether he might testify against Read in the planned retrial. He said if the POST commission, which looks into allegations of police misconduct, puts him on the Brady List, it could make any of his future testimony extremely problematic.

“If Trooper Proctor ends up on the Brady list in this particular case, to be honest, virtually any testimony he gives in court is useless,” McGhee said.

Governor Maura Healey was asked whether Proctor should be fired.

“This is the right step to remove him,” she said. “There is a process, so we have to go through that process.”

Proctor’s conduct is the latest in a long line of scandals that have undermined public trust in the Massachusetts State Police. Some officers have been accused of taking bribes for commercial driver’s licenses, others have been convicted of stealing overtime pay for shifts they never worked, and more.

NBC10 Boston asked Mawn how the department can regain trust after so many scandals in recent years.

“We need to work very hard to get more public involvement so that we understand what we need to do and where we want to go to maintain trust, build trust and, in some cases, regain trust,” Mawn said.

“The Association is proud of the work our members do every day and the fact that our homicide clearance rate in Massachusetts is the envy of the country,” the State Police Association of Massachusetts said in a lengthy statement regarding Proctor, which can be read in full here. “At the same time, we must make clear that we do not condone the language in the text messages that were presented as evidence during the trial.”

Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor refused to answer questions from NBC10’s Boston Investigators after Karen Read’s murder trial ended without a jury verdict.

Some of the officer’s text messages about Read were sent to his wife, Elizabeth Proctor. NBC10 Boston spoke to the couple outside their Canton home on Monday to seek their opinion on the mistrial.

Both asked reporter Kathy Curran to leave their lawn because she was on a public road.

“I fully support my husband,” Elizabeth Proctor said as they walked in. “Karen Read is a murderer.”

NBC10 Boston reached out to Proctor’s attorney this week for comment but did not receive a response.