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Process continues to find 5 more jurors for Karen Read trial
ED. YES. SEVEN MORE JURORS SEATED TODAY. THAT’S IN ADDITION TO FOUR WHO WERE SEATED YESTERDAY FOR A TOTAL OF 11 SO FAR. NOW, THE JUDGE WANTS 12 JURORS PLUS FOUR ALTERNATES. KAREN REID LEFT THE COURTHOUSE AFTER ANOTHER LONG DAY OF TRYING TO FIND A JURY FOR HER SECOND DEGREE MURDER TRIAL. IT’S ABOUT WHAT WE EXPECTED, YOU KNOW, BE DONE. MAYBE TOMORROW. NO WAY OF KNOWING ON THIS SECOND DAY OF JURY SELECTION, THE JURY POOL INCLUDED 85 PEOPLE FROM ACROSS NORFOLK COUNTY. WHEN THE JUDGE ASKED IF THEY’D HEARD ABOUT THE CASE, 58 OF THEM RAISED THEIR HANDS AND WHEN ASKED IF THEY’D ALREADY FORMED AN OPINION ABOUT REID’S GUILT OR INNOCENCE, 24 INDICATED THEY HAD. WERE YOU ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE THAT HAD HEARD ABOUT IT? NO, I HADN’T HEARD ABOUT IT, TONY PARDO SAYS HE WAS RELIEVED TO BE EXCUSED FROM WHAT’S EXPECTED TO BE A NEARLY EIGHT WEEK TRIAL. HE SAYS MANY OF THE OTHER PROSPECTIVE JURORS ALSO DIDN’T WANT TO BE PICKED. I KIND OF GOT THE SENSE THAT MOST PEOPLE DIDN’T. PROBABLY ABOUT HALF THE PEOPLE RAISED THEIR HAND WHEN THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT HAVING A HARDSHIP OR, YOU KNOW, THINGS OF THAT NATURE. SO ON A TWO PAGE QUESTIONNAIRE, PROSPECTIVE JURORS ARE BEING ASKED ABOUT THINGS LIKE IF THEY WOULD BE OKAY, NOT READING ANY NEWS ABOUT THE CASE, IF THEY HAVE STRONG PERSONAL BELIEFS ABOUT LAW ENFORCEMENT, IF THEY’VE EVER HAD IN AN INCIDENT OF DRINKING AND DRIVING, AND IF THEY’D BE ABLE TO VIEW GRAPHIC AUTOPSY PHOTOGRAPHS. NOW, THERE WERE FEWER DEMONSTRATORS OUTSIDE THE COURTHOUSE TODAY, FEWER THAN YESTERDAY DURING THE FIRST DAY OF JURY SELECTION, A JUDGE ON THE STATE’S HIGHEST COURT HAS UPHELD A 200 FOOT BUFFER ZONE AROUND THE COURTHOUSE, WHERE DEMONSTRATIONS ARE BANNED. BUT THE PROTESTERS HAVE ASKED THE FULL COURT TO WEIGH IN ON THE ISSUE.
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Process continues to find 5 more jurors for Karen Read murder trial
Her attorneys plan to argue third-party culprit defense
Updated: 9:11 AM EDT Apr 18, 2024
Five additional jurors are being sought Thursday from a pool of 52 candidates for the murder trial of Karen Read, the Massachusetts woman who is accused in the 2022 death of her boyfriend, a Boston police officer.Already, four jurors were selected from a pool of 88 people on Tuesday and seven were picked from a pool of 85 on Wednesday. The judge wants a total of 12 jurors and four alternates before attorneys begin to present their cases. Prospective jurors are being asked whether they had contact with any witnesses, whether they had heard about the case and whether they had formed an opinion about the case. They were then asked to complete a questionnaire.What to know about the case:Karen Read, 43, of Mansfield, is accused of second-degree murder and other charges. The prosecution says she hit her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe, with her vehicle outside of a home in Canton during a snowstorm on Jan. 29, 2022, following a night of drinking. She has pleaded not guilty.Read and her defense team claim she is the victim of a coverup and plan to present a third-party culprit defense. They claim O’Keefe was beaten inside the home, bitten by a dog and then left outside. In pretrial motions, prosecutors revealed the existence of text messages they said suggested a “romantic entanglement” with a friend who was present at locations Read and O’Keefe visited on the night of the incident. Other documents have also suggested trouble in the relationship between Read and O’Keefe. Read is also accused of having frequent contact with a controversial blogger known as “Turtleboy,” Aiden Kearney, who now faces charges in related cases.The trial is expected to last 6-8 weeks, once a jury is seated.Potential jurors are being asked whether they have ever been involved in a motor vehicle crash, whether they have any connections to a drunk driving incident or domestic violence relationship and whether they have ever protested in support or opposition to law enforcement. Additionally, jurors are being questioned individually out of earshot of the public. Ahead of the trial, which has brought contentious debate and protest, the judge has ordered a “buffer zone” around the courthouse. A justice of the Supreme Judicial Court upheld the decision, but that ruling is also under appeal. Read, 43, of Mansfield, is accused of hitting John O’Keefe, a Boston police officer, with her vehicle outside of a home in Canton during a snowstorm on Jan. 29, 2022. Prosecutors say Read and O’Keefe had both been drinking that night.According to court documents, prosecutors plan to call up to 87 witnesses during the trial. The defense plans to call up to 77. Some names appear on both lists. Cannone told potential jurors on Tuesday that the trial is expected to last 6 to 8 weeks after the jury is seated.Video below: Former AG Martha Coakley weighs in on jury selection processRead and her defense team claim she is the victim of a coverup. They claim O’Keefe was beaten inside the home, bitten by a dog and then left outside. She has pleaded not guilty to charges including second-degree murder.Last week, Read’s defense said they will be arguing during the trial that someone else killed O’Keefe that night. Cannone said on Tuesday morning that she will, at least for now, allow the defense to pursue that strategy.
DEDHAM, Mass. —
Five additional jurors are being sought Thursday from a pool of 52 candidates for the murder trial of Karen Read, the Massachusetts woman who is accused in the 2022 death of her boyfriend, a Boston police officer.
Already, four jurors were selected from a pool of 88 people on Tuesday and seven were picked from a pool of 85 on Wednesday. The judge wants a total of 12 jurors and four alternates before attorneys begin to present their cases.
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Prospective jurors are being asked whether they had contact with any witnesses, whether they had heard about the case and whether they had formed an opinion about the case. They were then asked to complete a questionnaire.
What to know about the case:
- Karen Read, 43, of Mansfield, is accused of second-degree murder and other charges. The prosecution says she hit her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe, with her vehicle outside of a home in Canton during a snowstorm on Jan. 29, 2022, following a night of drinking. She has pleaded not guilty.
- Read and her defense team claim she is the victim of a coverup and plan to present a third-party culprit defense. They claim O’Keefe was beaten inside the home, bitten by a dog and then left outside.
- In pretrial motions, prosecutors revealed the existence of text messages they said suggested a “romantic entanglement” with a friend who was present at locations Read and O’Keefe visited on the night of the incident. Other documents have also suggested trouble in the relationship between Read and O’Keefe.
- Read is also accused of having frequent contact with a controversial blogger known as “Turtleboy,” Aiden Kearney, who now faces charges in related cases.
- The trial is expected to last 6-8 weeks, once a jury is seated.
Potential jurors are being asked whether they have ever been involved in a motor vehicle crash, whether they have any connections to a drunk driving incident or domestic violence relationship and whether they have ever protested in support or opposition to law enforcement.
Additionally, jurors are being questioned individually out of earshot of the public.
Ahead of the trial, which has brought contentious debate and protest, the judge has ordered a “buffer zone” around the courthouse. A justice of the Supreme Judicial Court upheld the decision, but that ruling is also under appeal.
Read, 43, of Mansfield, is accused of hitting John O’Keefe, a Boston police officer, with her vehicle outside of a home in Canton during a snowstorm on Jan. 29, 2022. Prosecutors say Read and O’Keefe had both been drinking that night.
According to court documents, prosecutors plan to call up to 87 witnesses during the trial. The defense plans to call up to 77. Some names appear on both lists.
Cannone told potential jurors on Tuesday that the trial is expected to last 6 to 8 weeks after the jury is seated.
Video below: Former AG Martha Coakley weighs in on jury selection process
Read and her defense team claim she is the victim of a coverup. They claim O’Keefe was beaten inside the home, bitten by a dog and then left outside. She has pleaded not guilty to charges including second-degree murder.
Last week, Read’s defense said they will be arguing during the trial that someone else killed O’Keefe that night. Cannone said on Tuesday morning that she will, at least for now, allow the defense to pursue that strategy.
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