Updated: 3:17 p.m. 6/2/25
DEDHAM, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Week 7 of testimony is underway in the Karen Read murder retrial at Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass.
Read is accused of hitting her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe, with her SUV and leaving him to die in the snow on Jan. 29, 2022. Read’s defense team has claimed she is innocent and is being framed.
Jonathan Diamandis Testimony
Jonathan Diamandis was the first witness called to the stand on Monday morning. He grew up with former Massachusetts State Police (MSP) Trooper Michael Proctor, who was the lead investigator in the case. Proctor has since been fired from the MSP.
Diamandis testified about a text chain he was in with Proctor and some of their friends from high school, adding that Proctor goes by the nicknames “Chip” and “Bear.” Defense attorney David Yannetti’s questioning was brief before special prosecutor Hank Brennan started cross-examination.
Brennan had Diamandis read through text messages sent the night O’Keefe’s body was found in the snow, where Proctor talked about the case. Proctor texted that he initially thought O’Keefe had been beaten up by the owner, a Boston Police officer, of the 34 Fairview Road home where O’Keefe’s body was found, but then believed Read had hit him with her car once he saw O’Keefe’s injuries.
Further along in the text chain, Proctor made a series of inappropriate comments about Read and at one point referred to her as a “wack job c***.” Diamandis said he was not comfortable reading those texts, as they were not his words and he did not condone them, so Brennan read them for the court instead.
Diamandis said he was aware of Proctor’s termination and said it was “due to text messages.” At redirect, Yannetti asked if he was aware that Proctor was also fired “revealing confidential information about an investigation” and “for conduct unbecoming [of] a State Trooper.” He said he was not aware of that.
Boston Police Officer Kelly Dever Testimony
Boston Police Officer Kelly Driver was next on the stand. She previously worked as an officer for the Canton Police Department and was working a patrol shift on the day O’Keefe’s body was found. She testified that she was asked to take over dispatch responsibilities when a call came in reporting a body in the snow.
Testimony became heated quickly as Dever asserted that she had “no connection to the case” and that she was unsure why she was called to testify. She was not called as a witness in the first trial. Dever said she was not interviewed by any law enforcement agency about the case until August 2023.
During that interview, she claimed to have seen ATF agent Brian Higgins and Canton Police Chief Kenneth Berkowitz enter the Canton Police Department’s sallyport garage for a “wildly long time.” She said that was what she recalled at the time, but she recanted the statement because it was a “false memory.”
“The defense released a timeline right prior to the first trial that the vehicle on that day did not arrive in the sallyport until about an hour and a half after I left, meaning it is not possible that I saw that,” Dever testified during cross-examination.
Devers said she felt “threatened” by the defense team and that they threatened that she might be charged with perjury in a phone call prior to the first trial. She also added that she has no incentive to lie as she would “lose everything.” Jackson denied the claims, but Dever said she was threatened and contacted the FBI. Their legal team assured her that perjury was not applicable in this case.
Dog Bite Expert Dr. Marie Russell Testimony
Emergency physician Dr. Marie Russell was the next witness called to the stand on Monday. Prosecutors fought to keep her off the stand, but Judge Beverly Cannone ruled during a pre-trial hearing in January that she can testify as an expert witness since she has knowledge an average person would not have about dog bites.
Defense attorney Robert Alessi questioned Dr. Russell about her qualifications, to which she said she has dealt with at least 500 dog bites throughout her career. She also explained the difference between types of dog bites, saying civilian dog bites are “rather minor,” while canine or police dogs leave “extensive” wounds.
Several diagrams of dog teeth were put up for the jury to see as she testified about different kinds of dog bites and scratches, as well as what they look like. Dr. Russell also said she found out about the case after reading a Boston Globe article and reached out to the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office.
The prosecution has argued that O’Keefe’s arm injuries came from Read’s broken taillight, while the defense has argued they came from the German Shepherd that lived at the 34 Fairview Road home. Based on her years of experience as both an emergency physician and a former Malden Police officer, she said she believes the injuries came from a dog.
“Those wounds were inflicted as the result of a dog attack,” Dr. Russell testified right before the court broke for lunch.
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