YET. EXPLOSIVE TESTIMONY TODAY IN THE KAREN REED MURDER TRIAL, THE LEAD INVESTIGATOR IN THIS CASE ADMITS THAT HE WROTE INSULTING AND OFFENSIVE TEXT MESSAGES ABOUT REED WHILE WORKING ON THE CASE. TROOPER MICHAEL PROCTOR SAYS HE’S SORRY FOR THE LANGUAGE HE USED, BUT THAT HE STILL BELIEVES REED IS GUILTY. NEWSCENTER 5 DAVID BIENICK HAS BEEN COVERING THIS FROM THE BEGINNING. HE’S LIVE TONIGHT ONCE AGAIN OUTSIDE THE COURTHOUSE IN DEDHAM DAVID. GOOD. GOOD EVENING BEN. GOOD EVENING. WE ALREADY KNEW THAT TROOPER MICHAEL PROCTOR IS THE SUBJECT OF AN INTERNAL INVESTIGATION BY THE MASSACHUSETTS STATE POLICE. TODAY. PROCTOR HIMSELF REVEALED REGRET ACTIONS THAT HE SAYS HE NOW REGRETS WHEN HE WAS FORCED TO READ HIS OWN WORDS. KEEP YOUR VOICE UP LOUD, PLEASE. TROOPER MICHAEL PROCTOR’S VOICE GOT SOFTER AND SOFTER EACH TIME HE READ ONE. ONE OF THE TEXT MESSAGES HE’D WRITTEN ABOUT KAREN REED WHILE INVESTIGATING THE CASE. SHE’S A WHACK JOB. PROCTOR ALSO USED MORE OFFENSIVE TERMS TO REFER TO REED AS HE COMMUNICATED WITH FRIENDS, FAMILY AND STATE POLICE COWORKERS WHILE SEARCHING REED’S CELL PHONE, HE TEXTED THIS TO ANOTHER TROOPER NO NUDE SO FAR. PROCTOR INSISTED HIS COMMENTS DID NOT INFLUENCE HOW HE HANDLED THE CASE, AND THE CONCLUSION THAT HE REACHED THAT REED IS GUILTY OF KILLING HER BOYFRIEND, JOHN O’KEEFE. THE REST OF THE UNPROFESSIONAL AND REGRETTABLE COMMENTS ARE SOMETHING I’M NOT PROUD OF, AND I SHOULDN’T HAVE WROTE IN IN A PRIVATE OR ANY TYPE OF SETTING, MISS REED, DO YOU WANT TO SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THE LANGUAGE YOU HEARD, LIKE THE STATE POLICE TO SAY SOMETHING ABOUT THE LANGUAGE THEY’VE HEARD EARLIER? PROCTOR SHOWED PIECES OF A TAIL LIGHT FROM REED’S SUV, WHICH HE SAID HE’D FOUND. THE DEFENSE HAS ACCUSED PROCTOR OF BREAKING THE TAILLIGHT HIMSELF, THEN PLANTING THE PIECES AT THE CRIME SCENE. I THINK YOU I THINK YOU GOT TO GET GOOD INSIGHT INTO HIS TRUE BIAS AS TRUE CHARACTER. YEAH, HE’S HE’S A PIG. IS THERE ANYTHING IN THOSE MESSAGES WHERE HE BELIEVES HE SAYS SHE’S INNOCENT AND THAT HE’S TRYING TO FRAME HER FOR EVERYTHING IN THE TEXT MESSAGES SHOW? IS BIAS. THE DEFENSE ALSO MADE THE POINT THAT NONE OF PROCTOR’S COWORKERS ON THE STATE POLICE CALLED HIM OUT FOR THE LANGUAGE THAT HE WAS USING. THE DEFENSE HAS NOT YET DONE WITH MICHAEL PROCTOR. THEY WILL CONT
Karen Read murder trial: Lead investigator reads ‘regrettable’ messages in court
Read is accused of killing her boyfriend, John O’Keefe, with an SUV during a winter storm
Updated: 5:53 AM EDT Jun 11, 2024
Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor was forced during cross-examination to read a series of text messages that he sent about murder suspect Karen Read, who is accused of hitting John O’Keefe, her boyfriend, with an SUV and leaving him to die in a snowstorm.Proctor described his messages as “very regrettable.”Read, 44, of Mansfield, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and other charges. The prosecution says she hit O’Keefe with her black SUV outside of a home at 34 Fairview Road in Canton during a snowstorm on Jan. 29, 2022, following a night of drinking. Her defense plans to argue that someone else is responsible for killing O’Keefe. Proctor, a lead investigator in the case, was questioned about messages he shared with a group of friends. After reading one of the messages, in which he called Read a “whack job” and an expletive, he apologized to the jury for his “unprofessional” comments. In one message sent to co-workers and supervisors while searching Read’s phone, Proctor wrote, “no nudes so far.” Jackson asked if Proctor had ever looked for naked pictures of male suspects. Proctor said “jokes” don’t have any bearing on the facts and integrity of the case.At times, Proctor’s voice was barely audible as he read messages that he described as “juvenile” and “unprofessional.” He testified, however, that the messages did not influence his investigation.Earlier in the day, Proctor’s testimony focused on O’Keefe’s body and physical evidence from the case. He testified about seeing O’Keefe’s body in the emergency room and noticed abrasions on his right arm, swollen eyes and blood on the back of his head. He and Massachusetts State Police Sgt. Yuri Bukhenick then traveled to Read’s parents’ home in Dighton, where he saw Read’s vehicle.”We observed Miss Read’s Lexus parked in the driveway,” Proctor said. “The front of it was facing one of the garage doors. That’s where we observed a broken taillight on the right of the vehicle.” Proctor said the vehicle was then towed to the Canton Police Department. “Sgt. Bukhenick and I never touched any part of that vehicle,” Proctor said. Bukhenick was also questioned Monday again about the “mirrored” video that shows Read’s SUV inside the garage of the Canton Police Department. Defense attorney Alan Jackson asked Bukhenick to identify a person who appeared to be behind the vehicle.”They are in a frozen frame. I can tell there are two individuals back there,” Bukhenick, however, said he could not identify Proctor as one of the people.Bukhenick said when he was questioned by the prosecution about the video, he did not indicate to the jury that it was inverted. “It’s an accurate depiction of the events taking place,” Bukhenick said.When asked about what appeared to be a “jump” in the footage, Bukhenick explained that the recording is triggered by motion, there are no “missing” parts and the video was not manipulated. “The video does not record because it is not triggered to record,” Bukhenick said.Nicholas Barros, a sergeant with the Dighton Police Department, testified that he accompanied state police to the residence of Read’s parents, where Read’s car was parked. “We observed a black Lexus SUV in the driveway,” Barros said. “I saw that there was some damage to the right rear taillight.” Barros said the taillight was “cracked with a piece missing,” and there was “a dent” on the passenger side of the SUV near the taillight.Live updates:3:56 p.m. Court ends for the day. Cross-examination of Proctor will resume on Wednesday.3:51 p.m. Proctor acknowledges that none of his coworkers or supervisors called him out for his language.3:50 p.m. In one message to coworkers and supervisors while searching Read’s phone, Proctor wrote “no nudes so far.” Jackson asks if he’s ever looked for naked pictures of male suspects. Proctor says “jokes” don’t have any bearing on facts and integrity of the case.3:47 p.m. Jackson asks how Proctor feels about Yannetti right now pointing to him in the courtroom. Proctor: “Still don’t care for him.”3:46 p.m. Jackson shows a picture of Yannetti that a co-worker sent him. Proctor says he responded, “I’m going through his retarded client’s phone.” Also said of Yannetti, “I hate that man. I truly hate that man.”3:37 p.m. Defense attorney Alan Jackson begins cross-examining Proctor by asking if he was “bragging” to 5 co-workers about searching through Read’s cell phone. Proctor says he referred to Read as “retarded.”3:33 p.m. Lally concludes about 3.5 hours of direct questioning of Proctor.3:28 p.m. Proctor says while searching the phone, he came across messaged Read exchanged with her attorney David Yannetti. Says he had to temporarily “freeze” search and turn phone over to an independent team to remove those messages.3:26 p.m. Proctor is talking about examining Read’s cell phone. At the defense, Read suddenly has a surprised look on her face. She says something to her attorneys.3:20 p.m. Another text message from Proctor to a co-worker: “Do you like women who s— themselves?” Proctor says “again a very regrettable comment I made about Ms. Read’s medical condition.” (She has M.S.)3:10 p.m. In another message with DiCiccio about the medical examiner not determining O’Keefe’s cause of death, Proctor says he again referred to Read as a “whack job.”3:06 p.m. Proctor is now reading text messages he shared with a co-worker, Tpr David DiCicco. Says they were “busting each other chops” in regards to a conference call with the medical examiner and the autopsy. Calls it a “typical joke.”3:01 p.m. Proctor says despite his personal comments, “the compelling evidence pointed right at” Read.2:57 p.m. Proctor’s voice gets softer as he reads the texts. He is obviously embarrassed. The court officers signal the judge the jury can’t hear him. The judge tells him to speak up.2:54 p.m. Lally hands Proctor a group of messages he exchanged with his wife Elizabeth. In one message, he uses a disparaging term to refer to Read. He again turns to jury and expresses regret.2:50 p.m. Proctor reads a text message in which his sister Courtney says the Alberts want to get him a gift. Says he never received a gift from them.2:43 p.m. Proctor’s voice is barely audible as he reads more text messages about Read. A court officer signals to the judge he can’t hear. Proctor says the “juvenile, unprofessional” did not influence the investigation. 2:41 p.m. Proctor turns to the jury and says these comments are unprofessional, he regrets them and should not have made them. 2:40 p.m. Proctor reads one of the texts he wrote: “From all accounts, he didn’t do anything wrong. She’s a whack job, a c—.”2:31 p.m. Proctor reads text message from friend saying, “Bet the owner of the home will receive some s—.” Proctor replied: “Nope, homeowner is a Boston cop, too.”2:08 p.m. Lally resumes questioning of Proctor. He’s asking about text messages Proctor shared with a group of friends. One asked him about “the name of that BPD cop.” He later responded “John O’Keefe” and tells his friend that O’Keefe took custody of his sister’s kids.2:04 p.m. Trial pauses for lunch break. 12:55 p.m. Proctor says he knew Brian and Julie Albert and their son Colin before interviewing them. Says he knows them through his sister and that he and his wife and Julie babysit. 12:45 p.m. Proctor removes taillight fragments from evidence bag and shows them to the jury. 12:30 p.m. Lally shows picture of O’Keefe’s Chevy Traverse. Proctor points to bumper to show where it might have come in contact with Read’s Lexus. Defense objects. Sidebar. 12:20 p.m. Proctor says no snow appears to fall off O’Keefe’s vehicle as Read’s SUV gets close and no pieces of red plastic appear on the snow as Read pulls away. (The defense says this is the moment Read’s taillight was cracked.) 12:15 p.m. Proctor says after visiting crime scene, they went to O’Keefe’s home to look at his vehicle. Says they’d seen Ring camera video of Read’s SUV coming close to it. 12:10 p.m. Proctor says he never went to 34 Fairview Rd alone. Says on Feb. 3, they found black drinking straw, O’Keefe’s cap “deep underneath the snow”, pieces of plastic. 12 p.m. Proctor says when they executed the search warrant on Read’s SUV on 2/1/22 at Canton PD, it was in the same condition as he’d seen in on 1/29/22 in Dighton. 11:55 a.m. Proctor says the evidence they recovered on 1/29/22 was placed in temporary storage area at Canton PD because they didn’t have access to permanent storage locker. 11:45 a.m. “Sgt. Bukhenik and I never touched any part of that vehicle,” Proctor says about the SUV when it was at the Canton Police Dept. 11:37 a.m. Proctor says he noticed “broken” taillight on Read’s SUV when they arrived at her parents’ home in Dighton. 11:25 a.m. From McCabe residence, Proctor went to Good Samaritan Hospital where he was told Read had been released several hours earlier. He also saw O’Keefe’s body in ER, noticed abrasions on his right arm, swollen eyes, blood on back of head. 11:20 a.m. Proctor says Firefighter Flematti told him more about O’Keefe’s injuries, including that he had a 10% chance of survival. So he decided to respond. Shoveled out his driveway and went to Canton PD about 10 a.m. to meet Sgt. Bukhenik. 11:17 a.m. Proctor says he was initially told O’Keefe’s death might be a “possible medical situation,” so he contacted Sgt. Lank at Canton police to find out more. 11:15 a.m. Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor takes stand10:40 a.m. Barros says he saw “some damage” to right rear taillight of Read’s SUV. Says taillight was “cracked with a piece missing.” Says he also saw a dent near the taillight. 10:29 a.m. Prosecution calls Nicholas Barros, a sergeant with Dighton Police Department10:20 a.m. Bukhenik says he initially told medical examiner’s office this might be a domestic situation based on info he’d received from first responders that Read said she’d hit him and that a cocktail glass was found at scene. 10:15 a.m. Lally is making the point that this video was shot after the video of the SUV in O’Keefe’s driveway and after the video at Read’s parents’ home in Dighton. 10:10 a.m. Prosecutor Adam Lally is now playing the uninverted video of the SUV in the garage. Asks Bukhenik to notice the snow falling from driver’s door. Asks him if he noticed any snow falling for O’Keefe’s vehicle when Read’s SUV came close in driveway.10 a.m. Jackson plays video from another camera in the Canton police garage. Jackson says the SUV “just appears.” Says 42 minutes are missing. Says portion of the video showing person near taillight is missing. 9:55 a.m. Court resumes. Jury returns. Jackson plays un-inverted video of the SUV. Bukhenik gets up to look at the timestamp near the bottom of the screen.9:30 a.m. Jackson asks if Bukhenik notices that some people appear out of nowhere in the video. Bukhenik says the video is triggered by motion. “It’s not missing. It just wasn’t recorded,” Bukhenik says. 9:20 a.m. Jackson: You did not mention that this video is inverted, did you? Bukhenik: It did not come up. 9:18 a.m. Jackson is asking where Tpr. Michael Proctor appears in the video. Bukhenik says he cannot be sure where Proctor is. 9:15 a.m. Sgt. Yuriy Bukhenik returns to the stand. Defense attorney Alan Jackson resumes cross-examination about the video of Read’s SUV at the Canton Police Department. Bukhenik confirms the person seen slipping in front of the vehicle is the tow truck driver. 9:10 a.m. State Police Sgt. Yuri Bukhenick returns to stand and is questioned about video of Read’s SUV inside Canton police station8:50 a.m. Judge says this looks like “at least a day of voir dire” to learn more about these defense witnesses. The judge reminds attorneys she told the jury they’d likely get case by last week of June. Yannetti says hearing will take “about two hours”. 8:45 a.m. Assistant District Attorney Laura McLaughlin says this is trial by ambush. 8:45 a.m. The prosecution wants to exclude, Dr. Marie Russell, an emergency medicine specialist in Los Angeles, because it did not learn about the plan to have her testify until week six of the trial. 8:36 a.m. Good morning. Day 22 of testimony. We’re starting early today with a prosecution motion to exclude a defense witness. Then we will hear more cross-examination of Sgt. Yuriy Bukhenik. We may also hear more about the “mirrored” video of Read’s SUV. Follow posts from reporter David BienickRelated links:Recap of testimony, evidence from each day of the case Evidence slideshowWhat to know about the case:Karen Read, 44, of Mansfield, is accused of second-degree murder and other charges. The prosecution says she hit her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe, with her vehicle outside of a home in Canton during a snowstorm on Jan. 29, 2022, following a night of drinking. She returned hours later to find him in a snowbank.Read has pleaded not guilty.Read and her defense team claim she is the victim of a cover-up and plan to present a third-party culprit defense. They claim O’Keefe was beaten inside the home, bitten by a dog, and then left outside.In pretrial motions, prosecutors revealed the existence of text messages they said suggested a “romantic entanglement” with a friend who was present at locations Read and O’Keefe visited on the night of the incident. Other documents have also suggested trouble in the relationship between Read and O’Keefe.Read is also accused of having frequent contact with a controversial blogger known as “Turtleboy,” Aiden Kearney, who now faces charges in related cases.Opening statements were delivered on April 29.The trial is expected to last 6-8 weeks.Case evidence slideshow: Prosecutors are trying to show that Read’s alleged actions outside 34 Fairview Road were intentional. Read’s lawyers have alleged there was a cover-up involving members of several law enforcement agencies. They say O’Keefe was beaten by someone else inside the home, bitten by a dog and then left outside.The defense, which has been allowed to present what is called third-party culprit evidence, argues that investigators focused on Read because she was a “convenient outsider” who saved them from having to consider other suspects. Those they have implicated include Brian Albert, who owned the home in Canton where O’Keefe died, and Brian Higgins, an ATF agent who was there that night.Higgins testified about a “romantic” encounter and a series of text messages he exchanged with Read. In those flirty messages, Read told him that O’Keefe had “hooked up” with another woman during a vacation. The defense is trying to convince the jury that O’Keefe was beaten and suggested that Colin Albert, nephew of the family that owned the home on Fairview Road, had been in a fight. Albert said a hand injury came when he fell in a driveway and that he never saw O’Keefe during the celebration of his cousin’s birthday on the night in question.He also confirmed on cross-examination that he has known the lead state police investigator in this case, Trooper Michael Proctor, since he was a child. A former Massachusetts police toxicologist, Nicholas Roberts, testified that Read’s blood alcohol content at 9 a.m. was between .078% and .083%, right around the legal limit for intoxication in Massachusetts. Based on a police report that suggested her last drink was at 12:45 a.m., her peak blood alcohol level would have been between .135% and .292%, he said.O’Keefe had been raising his niece and nephew, and they told jurors that they heard frequent arguments between him and Read. Both of the teenagers described an incident in which O’Keefe asked Read to leave the house and she refused.The trial’s first few days detailed the futile efforts of first responders to save O’Keefe. They found him face up when they arrived just before dawn on Jan. 29. He was pronounced dead at the hospital, and an autopsy later found he died of hypothermia and blunt force trauma. Several of the first responders said they heard Read make statements, including, “I hit him,” after O’Keefe was found. Defense attorneys confronted several of those witnesses by asking why those alleged remarks were not included in official reports.Officers also testified about unusual procedures used during the investigation, including the decision to collect bloody snow in red plastic cups and clearing snow from the crime scene.
Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor was forced during cross-examination to read a series of text messages that he sent about murder suspect Karen Read, who is accused of hitting John O’Keefe, her boyfriend, with an SUV and leaving him to die in a snowstorm.
Proctor described his messages as “very regrettable.”
Read, 44, of Mansfield, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and other charges. The prosecution says she hit O’Keefe with her black SUV outside of a home at 34 Fairview Road in Canton during a snowstorm on Jan. 29, 2022, following a night of drinking. Her defense plans to argue that someone else is responsible for killing O’Keefe.
Proctor, a lead investigator in the case, was questioned about messages he shared with a group of friends. After reading one of the messages, in which he called Read a “whack job” and an expletive, he apologized to the jury for his “unprofessional” comments.
In one message sent to co-workers and supervisors while searching Read’s phone, Proctor wrote, “no nudes so far.” Jackson asked if Proctor had ever looked for naked pictures of male suspects. Proctor said “jokes” don’t have any bearing on the facts and integrity of the case.
At times, Proctor’s voice was barely audible as he read messages that he described as “juvenile” and “unprofessional.” He testified, however, that the messages did not influence his investigation.
Earlier in the day, Proctor’s testimony focused on O’Keefe’s body and physical evidence from the case. He testified about seeing O’Keefe’s body in the emergency room and noticed abrasions on his right arm, swollen eyes and blood on the back of his head. He and Massachusetts State Police Sgt. Yuri Bukhenick then traveled to Read’s parents’ home in Dighton, where he saw Read’s vehicle.
“We observed Miss Read’s Lexus parked in the driveway,” Proctor said. “The front of it was facing one of the garage doors. That’s where we observed a broken taillight on the right of the vehicle.”
Proctor said the vehicle was then towed to the Canton Police Department.
“Sgt. Bukhenick and I never touched any part of that vehicle,” Proctor said.
Bukhenick was also questioned Monday again about the “mirrored” video that shows Read’s SUV inside the garage of the Canton Police Department. Defense attorney Alan Jackson asked Bukhenick to identify a person who appeared to be behind the vehicle.
“They are in a frozen frame. I can tell there are two individuals back there,” Bukhenick, however, said he could not identify Proctor as one of the people.
Bukhenick said when he was questioned by the prosecution about the video, he did not indicate to the jury that it was inverted.
“It’s an accurate depiction of the events taking place,” Bukhenick said.
When asked about what appeared to be a “jump” in the footage, Bukhenick explained that the recording is triggered by motion, there are no “missing” parts and the video was not manipulated.
“The video does not record because it is not triggered to record,” Bukhenick said.
Nicholas Barros, a sergeant with the Dighton Police Department, testified that he accompanied state police to the residence of Read’s parents, where Read’s car was parked.
“We observed a black Lexus SUV in the driveway,” Barros said. “I saw that there was some damage to the right rear taillight.”
Barros said the taillight was “cracked with a piece missing,” and there was “a dent” on the passenger side of the SUV near the taillight.
Live updates:
- 3:56 p.m. Court ends for the day. Cross-examination of Proctor will resume on Wednesday.
- 3:51 p.m. Proctor acknowledges that none of his coworkers or supervisors called him out for his language.
- 3:50 p.m. In one message to coworkers and supervisors while searching Read’s phone, Proctor wrote “no nudes so far.” Jackson asks if he’s ever looked for naked pictures of male suspects. Proctor says “jokes” don’t have any bearing on facts and integrity of the case.
- 3:47 p.m. Jackson asks how Proctor feels about Yannetti right now pointing to him in the courtroom. Proctor: “Still don’t care for him.”
- 3:46 p.m. Jackson shows a picture of Yannetti that a co-worker sent him. Proctor says he responded, “I’m going through his retarded client’s phone.” Also said of Yannetti, “I hate that man. I truly hate that man.”
- 3:37 p.m. Defense attorney Alan Jackson begins cross-examining Proctor by asking if he was “bragging” to 5 co-workers about searching through Read’s cell phone. Proctor says he referred to Read as “retarded.”
- 3:33 p.m. Lally concludes about 3.5 hours of direct questioning of Proctor.
- 3:28 p.m. Proctor says while searching the phone, he came across messaged Read exchanged with her attorney David Yannetti. Says he had to temporarily “freeze” search and turn phone over to an independent team to remove those messages.
- 3:26 p.m. Proctor is talking about examining Read’s cell phone. At the defense, Read suddenly has a surprised look on her face. She says something to her attorneys.
- 3:20 p.m. Another text message from Proctor to a co-worker: “Do you like women who s— themselves?” Proctor says “again a very regrettable comment I made about Ms. Read’s medical condition.” (She has M.S.)
- 3:10 p.m. In another message with DiCiccio about the medical examiner not determining O’Keefe’s cause of death, Proctor says he again referred to Read as a “whack job.”
- 3:06 p.m. Proctor is now reading text messages he shared with a co-worker, Tpr David DiCicco. Says they were “busting each other chops” in regards to a conference call with the medical examiner and the autopsy. Calls it a “typical joke.”
- 3:01 p.m. Proctor says despite his personal comments, “the compelling evidence pointed right at” Read.
- 2:57 p.m. Proctor’s voice gets softer as he reads the texts. He is obviously embarrassed. The court officers signal the judge the jury can’t hear him. The judge tells him to speak up.
- 2:54 p.m. Lally hands Proctor a group of messages he exchanged with his wife Elizabeth. In one message, he uses a disparaging term to refer to Read. He again turns to jury and expresses regret.
- 2:50 p.m. Proctor reads a text message in which his sister Courtney says the Alberts want to get him a gift. Says he never received a gift from them.
- 2:43 p.m. Proctor’s voice is barely audible as he reads more text messages about Read. A court officer signals to the judge he can’t hear. Proctor says the “juvenile, unprofessional” did not influence the investigation.
- 2:41 p.m. Proctor turns to the jury and says these comments are unprofessional, he regrets them and should not have made them.
- 2:40 p.m. Proctor reads one of the texts he wrote: “From all accounts, he didn’t do anything wrong. She’s a whack job, a c—.”
- 2:31 p.m. Proctor reads text message from friend saying, “Bet the owner of the home will receive some s—.” Proctor replied: “Nope, homeowner is a Boston cop, too.”
- 2:08 p.m. Lally resumes questioning of Proctor. He’s asking about text messages Proctor shared with a group of friends. One asked him about “the name of that BPD cop.” He later responded “John O’Keefe” and tells his friend that O’Keefe took custody of his sister’s kids.
- 2:04 p.m. Trial pauses for lunch break.
- 12:55 p.m. Proctor says he knew Brian and Julie Albert and their son Colin before interviewing them. Says he knows them through his sister and that he and his wife and Julie babysit.
- 12:45 p.m. Proctor removes taillight fragments from evidence bag and shows them to the jury.
- 12:30 p.m. Lally shows picture of O’Keefe’s Chevy Traverse. Proctor points to bumper to show where it might have come in contact with Read’s Lexus. Defense objects. Sidebar.
- 12:20 p.m. Proctor says no snow appears to fall off O’Keefe’s vehicle as Read’s SUV gets close and no pieces of red plastic appear on the snow as Read pulls away. (The defense says this is the moment Read’s taillight was cracked.)
- 12:15 p.m. Proctor says after visiting crime scene, they went to O’Keefe’s home to look at his vehicle. Says they’d seen Ring camera video of Read’s SUV coming close to it.
- 12:10 p.m. Proctor says he never went to 34 Fairview Rd alone. Says on Feb. 3, they found black drinking straw, O’Keefe’s cap “deep underneath the snow”, pieces of plastic.
- 12 p.m. Proctor says when they executed the search warrant on Read’s SUV on 2/1/22 at Canton PD, it was in the same condition as he’d seen in on 1/29/22 in Dighton.
- 11:55 a.m. Proctor says the evidence they recovered on 1/29/22 was placed in temporary storage area at Canton PD because they didn’t have access to permanent storage locker.
- 11:45 a.m. “Sgt. Bukhenik and I never touched any part of that vehicle,” Proctor says about the SUV when it was at the Canton Police Dept.
- 11:37 a.m. Proctor says he noticed “broken” taillight on Read’s SUV when they arrived at her parents’ home in Dighton.
- 11:25 a.m. From McCabe residence, Proctor went to Good Samaritan Hospital where he was told Read had been released several hours earlier. He also saw O’Keefe’s body in ER, noticed abrasions on his right arm, swollen eyes, blood on back of head.
- 11:20 a.m. Proctor says Firefighter Flematti told him more about O’Keefe’s injuries, including that he had a 10% chance of survival. So he decided to respond. Shoveled out his driveway and went to Canton PD about 10 a.m. to meet Sgt. Bukhenik.
- 11:17 a.m. Proctor says he was initially told O’Keefe’s death might be a “possible medical situation,” so he contacted Sgt. Lank at Canton police to find out more.
- 11:15 a.m. Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor takes stand
- 10:40 a.m. Barros says he saw “some damage” to right rear taillight of Read’s SUV. Says taillight was “cracked with a piece missing.” Says he also saw a dent near the taillight.
- 10:29 a.m. Prosecution calls Nicholas Barros, a sergeant with Dighton Police Department
- 10:20 a.m. Bukhenik says he initially told medical examiner’s office this might be a domestic situation based on info he’d received from first responders that Read said she’d hit him and that a cocktail glass was found at scene.
- 10:15 a.m. Lally is making the point that this video was shot after the video of the SUV in O’Keefe’s driveway and after the video at Read’s parents’ home in Dighton.
- 10:10 a.m. Prosecutor Adam Lally is now playing the uninverted video of the SUV in the garage. Asks Bukhenik to notice the snow falling from driver’s door. Asks him if he noticed any snow falling for O’Keefe’s vehicle when Read’s SUV came close in driveway.
- 10 a.m. Jackson plays video from another camera in the Canton police garage. Jackson says the SUV “just appears.” Says 42 minutes are missing. Says portion of the video showing person near taillight is missing.
- 9:55 a.m. Court resumes. Jury returns. Jackson plays un-inverted video of the SUV. Bukhenik gets up to look at the timestamp near the bottom of the screen.
- 9:30 a.m. Jackson asks if Bukhenik notices that some people appear out of nowhere in the video. Bukhenik says the video is triggered by motion. “It’s not missing. It just wasn’t recorded,” Bukhenik says.
- 9:20 a.m. Jackson: You did not mention that this video is inverted, did you? Bukhenik: It did not come up.
- 9:18 a.m. Jackson is asking where Tpr. Michael Proctor appears in the video. Bukhenik says he cannot be sure where Proctor is.
- 9:15 a.m. Sgt. Yuriy Bukhenik returns to the stand. Defense attorney Alan Jackson resumes cross-examination about the video of Read’s SUV at the Canton Police Department. Bukhenik confirms the person seen slipping in front of the vehicle is the tow truck driver.
- 9:10 a.m. State Police Sgt. Yuri Bukhenick returns to stand and is questioned about video of Read’s SUV inside Canton police station
- 8:50 a.m. Judge says this looks like “at least a day of voir dire” to learn more about these defense witnesses. The judge reminds attorneys she told the jury they’d likely get case by last week of June. Yannetti says hearing will take “about two hours”.
- 8:45 a.m. Assistant District Attorney Laura McLaughlin says this is trial by ambush.
- 8:45 a.m. The prosecution wants to exclude, Dr. Marie Russell, an emergency medicine specialist in Los Angeles, because it did not learn about the plan to have her testify until week six of the trial.
- 8:36 a.m. Good morning. Day 22 of testimony. We’re starting early today with a prosecution motion to exclude a defense witness. Then we will hear more cross-examination of Sgt. Yuriy Bukhenik. We may also hear more about the “mirrored” video of Read’s SUV.
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What to know about the case:
- Karen Read, 44, of Mansfield, is accused of second-degree murder and other charges. The prosecution says she hit her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe, with her vehicle outside of a home in Canton during a snowstorm on Jan. 29, 2022, following a night of drinking. She returned hours later to find him in a snowbank.
- Read has pleaded not guilty.
- Read and her defense team claim she is the victim of a cover-up and plan to present a third-party culprit defense. They claim O’Keefe was beaten inside the home, bitten by a dog, and then left outside.
- In pretrial motions, prosecutors revealed the existence of text messages they said suggested a “romantic entanglement” with a friend who was present at locations Read and O’Keefe visited on the night of the incident. Other documents have also suggested trouble in the relationship between Read and O’Keefe.
- Read is also accused of having frequent contact with a controversial blogger known as “Turtleboy,” Aiden Kearney, who now faces charges in related cases.
- Opening statements were delivered on April 29.
- The trial is expected to last 6-8 weeks.
Case evidence slideshow:
Prosecutors are trying to show that Read’s alleged actions outside 34 Fairview Road were intentional. Read’s lawyers have alleged there was a cover-up involving members of several law enforcement agencies. They say O’Keefe was beaten by someone else inside the home, bitten by a dog and then left outside.
The defense, which has been allowed to present what is called third-party culprit evidence, argues that investigators focused on Read because she was a “convenient outsider” who saved them from having to consider other suspects. Those they have implicated include Brian Albert, who owned the home in Canton where O’Keefe died, and Brian Higgins, an ATF agent who was there that night.
Higgins testified about a “romantic” encounter and a series of text messages he exchanged with Read. In those flirty messages, Read told him that O’Keefe had “hooked up” with another woman during a vacation.
The defense is trying to convince the jury that O’Keefe was beaten and suggested that Colin Albert, nephew of the family that owned the home on Fairview Road, had been in a fight. Albert said a hand injury came when he fell in a driveway and that he never saw O’Keefe during the celebration of his cousin’s birthday on the night in question.
He also confirmed on cross-examination that he has known the lead state police investigator in this case, Trooper Michael Proctor, since he was a child.
A former Massachusetts police toxicologist, Nicholas Roberts, testified that Read’s blood alcohol content at 9 a.m. was between .078% and .083%, right around the legal limit for intoxication in Massachusetts. Based on a police report that suggested her last drink was at 12:45 a.m., her peak blood alcohol level would have been between .135% and .292%, he said.
O’Keefe had been raising his niece and nephew, and they told jurors that they heard frequent arguments between him and Read. Both of the teenagers described an incident in which O’Keefe asked Read to leave the house and she refused.
The trial’s first few days detailed the futile efforts of first responders to save O’Keefe. They found him face up when they arrived just before dawn on Jan. 29. He was pronounced dead at the hospital, and an autopsy later found he died of hypothermia and blunt force trauma.
Several of the first responders said they heard Read make statements, including, “I hit him,” after O’Keefe was found. Defense attorneys confronted several of those witnesses by asking why those alleged remarks were not included in official reports.
Officers also testified about unusual procedures used during the investigation, including the decision to collect bloody snow in red plastic cups and clearing snow from the crime scene.
First appeared on www.wcvb.com