Karen Read was cleared of murder and manslaughter charges Wednesday, as a huge crowd of her supporters roared with applause outside of the courthouse in Dedham, Massachusetts. The jury found her guilty only of operating under the influence of alcohol.
Judge Beverly Cannone then sentenced Read to one year of probation after the verdict was announced.
Read’s supporters were so loud outside it was difficult for some inside the courtroom to hear what was being said when the long-awaited verdict was read. There are more than 1,000 people outside the courthouse.
You can watch live coverage from the courthouse on CBS News Boston in the video above.
Read was charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol, and leaving the scene of bodily injury and death in the death of her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe, in January 2022. She pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.
The jury began deliberating late Friday afternoon and discussed the case for about 90 minutes before returning for more deliberations Monday. The panel of seven women and five men had the case for about 20 hours total.
Karen Read jury verdict confusion
Reaching a verdict did not go smoothly. Just after the lunch break Wednesday afternoon, the jury said they had reached a verdict, then followed up minutes later saying they actually had not. Judge Cannone sent the jury back to continue deliberating, but minutes later they declared they had officially reached a verdict.
During closing arguments Friday, prosecutor Hank Brennan said Read was driving drunk when she dropped O’Keefe off at a home in Canton, backed over him with her SUV in a rage over their failing relationship and drove off, leaving him to die in a snowstorm.
Read’s attorney Alan Jackson told the jury in his closing that there was no car crash and that O’Keefe was killed in a fight inside the home and that possibility was never investigated by the lead investigator, Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor. Proctor was fired for his conduct in the case. He was not called to testify in this trial.
If Read had been convicted of second-degree murder, she faced up to life in prison, with the possibility of parole.
Read’s first trial ended in July 2024 with a mistrial due to a deeply divided jury. They deliberated for five days in that trial.
Karen Read retrial
The second trial began on April 22. The jury heard from 49 witness during 31 days of testimony before getting the case on June 13. They had access to more than 200 pieces of evidence, including the taillight from Read’s SUV and John O’Keefe’s clothes from the night he died.
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