The murder retrial of Karen Read, accused of killing her Boston police officer boyfriend, John O’Keefe, could land in jurors hands by Friday.
According to USA Today, prosecutors and defense attorneys told Judge Beverly Cannone on Tuesday that jurors could start deliberating as early as Friday in Karen Read’s second murder trial.
Read’s legal team called biomechanist Andrew Rentschler as its final witness late Tuesday. During his testimony, he explained his findings on O’Keefe’s brain, head, and arm injuries.
He stated his testing revealed impact forces much greater than those reflected in O’Keefe’s injuries. Rentschler said ARCCA’s tests—including a 29 mph field simulation—typically result in broken bones and dislocations, none of which appeared in O’Keefe’s case, ABC 5 reports.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, prosecutors alleged that Read, 45, intentionally hit O’Keefe with the rear passenger side of her Lexus SUV on January 29, 2022, after dropping him off outside a home on Fairview Road in Canton.
She faces charges of second-degree murder and two other offenses.
Special Prosecutor Hank Brennan pressed Rentschler on the limits of his analysis, pointing to his crash dummies use and lack of recent peer-reviewed work. The prosecution then questioned his independence, noting his close ties to other defense experts.
The court also reviewed autopsy photos and paint-transfer results. Rentschler said the evidence didn’t match the prosecution’s sideswipe theory.
Read has pleaded not guilty. Her defense team argued she was framed and claimed that O’Keefe entered the house—then owned by another Boston officer, Brian Albert, —where he was fatally beaten and possibly attacked by a German Shepherd. They said his body had been thrown out into a blizzard.
A hung jury ended Read’s first trial in July 2024.
Forensic pathologist and former medical examiner Elizabeth Laposata, along with other defense experts, argued that an animal likely bit O’Keefe and that he passed out instantly after hitting his head on an object.
Meanwhile, Read said Tuesday that she had made up her mind to not testify during the retrial.
“I am not testifying. The case is — it’s our last witness. (The jury) has heard my interview clips. They’ve heard my voice,” Read told reporters. “They’ve heard a lot of me.”
[Feature Photo: Karen Read/LinkedIn and John O’Keefe/Boston Police Department]
