Despite mistrial, jurors were unanimous: Karen Read was not Guilty of Second-Degree Murder of John O’Keefe

In a new court filing, Karen Read defense attorney Alan Jackson states he has had communication with one of the jurors who served on his client’s trial and that all 12 jurors agreed that Read was not guilty in the charge of Murder in the Second Degree.

Monday’s filing, which was filed in Norfolk Superior Court, gives insight into what jurors were thinking during deliberations that twice had them sending notes to Judge Beverley Cannone stating they were unable to reach a verdict in the case. Included in a motion to dismiss the case was an affidavit by Jackson that details information he received from what he calls “Juror A.”

Juror A told Jackson that the jury “unanimously agreed that Kare Read is NOT GUILTY of Count 1 (second degree murder).”

“Juror A was emphatic that Count 1 was off the table and that all 12 of the jurors were in agreement that she was NOT GUILTY of such crime” stated Jackson.

After 9 weeks of testimony and closing arguments, jurors were asked to consider three criminal charges in the trial. The first charge was that of second-degree murder, meaning Read intended to kill her boyfriend John O’Keefe that fateful January night back in 2022.

The second charge was for manslaughter while operating a motor vehicle under the influence of liquor. It was this charge that jurors could not come to an agreement on.

The third charge was for leaving the scene of personal injury or death. According to Jackson, this count was also a unanimous not guilty verdict from the jury.

The second charge, however, seems to have been the point of contention. A second affidavit in conjunction with the motion to dismiss was filed by Read’s other defense attorney, David Yannetti. In his statement, Yannetti delved deeper into the discussions of the jury during their deliberations.

Speaking with a third party connected to yet another juror, Yannetti’s statement includes text messages that detail the breakdown of jurors on that second charge. According to the statement, jurors were split on the second charge, with 4 in favor of not guilty and 8 saying Read was guilty of the manslaughter.

All this comes one week after Cannone ruled a mistrial in the case last Monday. The ruling came after Cannone read the following statement to the court on behalf of the jury in the case:

Judge Cannone,

Despite our commitment to the duty entrusted in us, we find ourselves deeply divided by fundamental differences in our opinions and state of mind. The divergence in our views are not rooted in a lack of understanding or effort but deeply held convictions that each of us carry, ultimately leading to a point where consensus is unattainable. We recognize the weight of this admissions, and the implications it holds.

Shortly after Cannone ruled a mistrial and released the jury, Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey’s office issued a statement on behalf of the Commonwealth stating their intent to retry the case. However, Read’s defense team argues in their latest motion that the two charges that the jury is alleged to have reached not guilty verdicts on should have been read and ruled on in court, thus preventing Read for being retried on those two charges.

Cannone filed her own ruling in the case today, stating that the names of the jurors, which would normally be available to the public, be impounded for the next ten days. Cannone concluded that there is a “real and present risk of (personal) harm to the jurors and to the integrity of their service.”

And as if that were not enough activity surrounding the case for one day, Massachusetts State Police officer Michael Proctor was suspended without pay this morning after an internal hearing intended to revisit the status of his employment. Proctor was transferred out of the Norfolk State Police Detective Unit back on July 1st.

Proctor’s own text messages to co-workers and friends about Read during his investigation into O’Keefe’s murder were some of the most memorable parts of the trial, with Proctor calling Read “a whack job c***” with a “weird Fall River accent” and “no ass.” He also acknowledged that he texted his sister that he hoped Read took her own life.