Karen Read’s defense team says jurors were unanimous on acquitting her of murder

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Louise Thomas

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Jurors in the trial of Karen Read unanimously concluded she was not guilty of murder or of leaving the scene of a deadly accident, and were deadlocked on only the remaining manslaughter charge before the judge abruptly declared a mistrial, her defense team said Monday.

The disclosure was made in a defense motion Monday seeking the judge's permission to question all 12 jurors after they learned of three who described their conclusions. They hope to show that for reasons of double jeopardy, the state of Massachusetts cannot retry her for murder.

Read was accused of ramming into her Boston police officer boyfriend with her SUV and leaving him for dead in a snowstorm in January 2022.

A judge made the mistrial declaration on the fifth day of deliberations after jurors declared that they were hopelessly deadlocked. The defense said she announced the mistrial without questioning the jurors about the individual charges, and without giving lawyers for either side a chance to comment.

The motion filed in Norfolk County Superior Court said one juror told the defense team that jurors voted 12-0 to acquit Read of second-degree murder and of leaving the scene of an accident in which there was a death. The motion asked for those charges to be dismissed. Jurors were deadlocked, however, on the charge of manslaughter while operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol, the juror told the attorneys.

The lawyers also received second- and third-hand accounts about two other jurors, both indicating there was agreement on acquitting Read of second-degree murder.

Read, a former adjunct professor at Bentley College, faced second-degree murder and other charges in the death of O’Keefe, a 16-year member of the Boston police who was found outside a Canton home of another Boston police officer. An autopsy found O’Keefe died of hypothermia and blunt force trauma.

The defense contended O’Keefe was killed inside the home after she dropped him off at the gathering and that the officers chose to frame her because she was a “convenient outsider.”

A turning point in the two-month trial came when the lead investigator, State Trooper Michael Proctor, was forced to acknowledge and apologize for sending offensive texts about Read to friends, family and fellow troopers during the investigation.

Massachusetts State Police relieved Proctor of duty after the trial, saying the move followed the agency’s previous decision to open an internal affairs investigation about potential serious misconduct. Proctor's status hearing was being held behind closed doors on Monday. The possible outcomes were suspension, being placed on restricted duty or being returned to full duty.