Karen Read's Lexus placed outside of a 34 Fairview Rd. in Canton for a jury visit. Photo: Mike Macklin/WBZ NewsRadio
DEDHAM, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Friday marked the fourth day of testimony in Karen Read's second murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass. Before hearing testimony, the jury visited the site in Canton, Mass. where Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe's body was found on Jan. 29, 2022.
Read is accused of hitting O'Keefe, her then-boyfriend, with her Lexus SUV and leaving him for dead in the snow after a night of drinking. O'Keefe's body was found the next morning outside of a Canton home at 34 Fairview Rd. The Lexus, now with a missing taillight, was placed outside of the home Friday for the jury to view.
Read did not accompany the jury, telling reporters she does "not want to go back to 34 Fairview."
After the visit, jurors heard testimony from Dr. Garrey Faller, who was the chief of pathology at Good Samaritan Medical Center in January of 2022. He spoke about the results of Karen Read's blood alcohol test taken on the morning of Jan. 29, 2022. Faller testified that Read's blood alcohol content was 93 mg/dl, or 0.093%, just after 9 a.m. That is over the legal limit of 0.08%.
Read is facing a charge of manslaughter while under the influence, along with charges of second degree murder and leaving the scene of personal injury and death.
The defense pushed back on the accuracy of Good Samaritan's testing, pointing out it was not the same type of testing done at forensic labs.
"Our test system is a little bit different than the forensic testing system, but it's also very good and very accurate," Faller said in response to the defense's questions.
The second witness of the day was Canton firefighter Jason Becker. He responded to the scene where O'Keefe's body was found, and assisted in taking Read to the hospital for a psychiatric evaluation. He testified that Read told him the last conversation she had with her "husband" was an argument.
"I didn't feel like it was my role to really find out the details on what was said, but that's what she said to me," Becker said on the stand.
The defense pointed out that Becker was not writing down a verbatim of his conversation with Read, suggesting his recollection of the statement may be inaccurate.
"I felt it was normal and like any argument that is private," Read said when asked about the testimony outside of the courthouse.
WBZ NewsRadio's Mike Macklin reports.