Karen Read Verdict 2024: Judge declares mistrial in Karen Reed murder trial, Jurors declared a mistrial in the Karen murder trial after the judge struggled with the verdict. Karen Reed is accused of hitting her Boston police officer boyfriend with her SUV and leaving him for dead in a snowbank, marking her seventh week on Friday. John O’Keefe, 46, died in the early morning hours of January 29, 2022, in the Boston suburb of Canton.
Prosecutors say Karen Reed, 44, dropped him off at a house party hosted by a fellow officer after a night of drinking, hit him while making a three-point turn and drove away. Reid has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and other charges. Her defense team argues that she was framed by someone who beat O’Keefe inside the home and that the homeowner’s ties to local and state police taint their investigation.
A Massachusetts judge declared a mistrial on Monday after jurors deadlocked in the case. Karen Reid, Who was accused Murder her Boston Police officer boyfriend in 2022.
Reed was charged with second-degree murder, as well as operating under the influence of alcohol and leaving the scene of personal injury and death.
Her trial began in late April, lasting several weeks. The case has garnered a great deal of attention, fueled by true crime bloggers and pink-shirted supporters of Reid.
Reid did not take the stand.
FILE – Karen Reed looks into the gallery during her murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court. (Boston Globe via Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)
Who is Karen Reid?
Reed, 44, is a former assistant professor at Bentley College.
Karen Read is a woman accused of murdering her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe, in January 2022.
She is charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol, and leaving the scene of a fatal collision for the death of her boyfriend John O’Keefe.
Read pleaded not guilty and claims she is a victim of a police cover-up, being falsely implicated by a group that includes law enforcement.
Her defense argues O’Keefe was beaten up and dragged outside after a fight at the home of Boston officer Brian Albert, where a party was taking place.
Prosecutors allege Read struck O’Keefe with her SUV during a heated argument, leaving him to die in the snow-covered yard. They say Read was heard saying “I hit him” at the scene.
The high-profile trial has been ongoing since April 2024 and the jury remains deadlocked after over 22.5 hours of deliberation.
Who was the victim, John O’Keefe?
John O’Keefe was 46 at the time of his death in 2022. He was a Boston police officer.
DEDHAM – June 10: Karen A. Reed, the 42-year-old girlfriend of Boston Police Officer John O’Keeffe, was arraigned in Norfolk Superior Court on June 10, 2022 in Dedham, MA on charges of second degree murder. There was a pr with a photo of the couple
Karen read the timeline
Reid and her boyfriend, O’Keefe, had gone to two bars the night of the officer’s death on Jan. 29, 2022, and then to a party in nearby Canton, police said. Reid said she didn’t feel well and decided not to attend, they said.
Once at the home, O’Keefe got out of Reed’s vehicle, and when she made a three-point turn, she struck him and then drove away, according to prosecutors.
Read later became agitated when she couldn’t reach O’Keefe, returned to the party, and found her body covered in snow with two friends, prosecutors said.
DEDHAM, MA – May 24: Pro-Karen Reed demonstrators say they’ve found a sense of kinship outside Norfolk Superior Court. (Photo by David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
First responders at the scene said Reed commented that she “hit him,” though she never said it was with her SUV.
Authorities said they found red and clear plastic pieces at the scene that came from Reed’s broken taillight. Prosecutors, who contend that Reed smashed her taillight when she backed into O’Keefe, showed photos of red plastic pieces in the snow and evidence bags that contained pieces of plastic.
What is argued in defense for Reid?
Reed’s lawyers argue that she was framed.
Defense attorney Alan Jackson described the cancer of lies that “spreads throughout the conspiracy” and told jurors they were “the only thing standing between Karen Reed and the tyranny of injustice.”
Related: Accused of killing woman by leaving body in car before boarding flight to Kenya, police say
Read Karen trial: Jurors begin deliberations
Karen Reed’s fate was left up to jurors Tuesday who must decide whether she ended a rocky romance by hitting her boyfriend with her SUV in a rage and fatally injuring him in the snow, or whether she was the victim of police corruption, designed to cover up the fight. at the home of his fellow Boston officer.
“You’ve been lied to in this courtroom. Your job is to make sure you never look away,” he said Tuesday.
Her attorneys also contend that O’Keefe was dragged out of the basement of Boston officer Brian Albert’s home in Canton after being beaten and bitten by a dog.
The defense argued that investigators focused on Reid because she was a “convenient outsider” who prevented them from considering other suspects, including Albert and other law enforcement officers, who were at the party.
What punishment does Reed face if convicted?
The manslaughter charge carries a prison sentence of five to 20 years and the other charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. This story was reported from Los Angeles.