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.