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DEDHAM, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Prosecutors in the Karen Read murder trial said several jurors in the case contacted them to say they found Read not guilty of second degree murder, more than a month after a mistrial was declared because of a hung jury.
Read, 44, of Mansfield, is accused of hitting her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O'Keefe, with her SUV and leaving him to die after a night out in Canton in Jan. 2022. Read pleaded not guilty, with her lawyers arguing she was framed for the killing.
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In the aftermath of the mistrial, Read's lawyers filed a motion to dismiss Counts 1 and 3 (second-degree murder and leaving a scene of personal injury and death), saying jurors told them they had unanimously found Read not guilty of those charges, and were only deadlocked on the charge of manslaughter.
In a post-trial notice of disclosure filed Thursday, the Norfolk County District Attorney's Office said three jurors reached out to them via email and one via voicemail to "confirm unanimous on charges one and three, as not guilty and as of last vote 9-3 guilty on the manslaughter charges... on the lower-level manslaughter charges."
The Commonwealth said they did not respond to these individuals because it is "ethically prohibited from engaging in discussions about the jury's deliberative process."
Prosecutors and defense lawyers will meet in court on Friday, Aug. 9 for oral arguments in the defense's motion to dismiss the two charges. Judge Beverly Cannone has noted that whatever decision is made will most likely be appealed.
A tentative retrial date is set for Jan. 27, 2025.
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