Attorneys for Karen Read, accused of killing boyfriend John O'Keefe, raise questions in her case
CANTON - New intrigue, and even conspiracy theories are surfacing around the case against Karen Read. Her attorneys are now poking holes in accusations she hit her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe, with her vehicle, and killed him. His body was discovered in a pile of snow outside the Canton home of a fellow officer who hosted a gathering there in January of 2022.
More than a year later, defense attorneys say prosecutors are refusing to share key evidence, including DNA, a broken tail light from Read's car, security video, and the vehicle's so-called "black box."
"Waiting over a year to get critical pieces of evidence in this case does seem unusual," said former prosecutor Jennifer Roman. "And there hasn't been any explanation for the delay, and that's probably what's even more concerning."
Roman says it could even be cause for a judge to bar the evidence. "If that happens, and they lose these key pieces of evidence and they can't rely them at trial, their case has been significantly compromised," said Roman.
Defense filings raise other evidence, like a Google search by someone at the Canton gathering that night that allegedly said "hos (sic) long to die in cold." The defense says that search was three hours before O'Keefe's body was discovered, and the search history was deleted the next day.
And the defense motion lays out another twist "…numerous defense wounds…consistent with a brutal fight…a cluster of deep scratches and puncture wounds to his right arm and forearm."
"There's always an intrigue around a young person dying," said Roman. "Particularly when that person's a police officer to die under the circumstances that he did."
A spokesperson for the Norfolk District Attorney's office said attorneys are "looking forward to being able to respond appropriately in court."
