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Massachusetts Judge Sets January Retrial Date in Karen Read Murder Case

A Massachusetts judge scheduled a retrial for Jan. 27, 2025, in the second-degree murder prosecution of Karen Read, three weeks after declaring a mistrial in the closely watched case, Axios Boston reported ^[1]. Judge Beverly Cannone declared a mistrial on July 1 after the jury said it was unable to reach a unanimous consensus on the fifth day of deliberations ^[2]. The Norfolk District Attorney's Office said following the mistrial that it planned to retry the case ^[2].

Prosecutors allege Read, 45, drunkenly drove a Lexus vehicle into John O'Keefe, her off-duty Boston Police officer boyfriend, and then left him to die in a blizzard outside a home in Canton, Massachusetts, on the night of January 29, 2022 ^[3]. Read had pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, and leaving the scene of a collision resulting in death ^[3]. Her defense argued that fellow law enforcement officers in that home killed O'Keefe, dumped his body on the lawn, and conspired to frame Read in a cover-up ^[3].

The defense moved to dismiss two of the three charges before any retrial could proceed, according to Axios Boston ^[1]. Read's attorneys asked the judge to dismiss the charges of second-degree murder and leaving the scene of a fatal accident, pointing to court documents in which they wrote that four jurors came forward to report the jury found Read not guilty of those two charges ^[2]. Defense attorney Alan Jackson argued in those filings that "there was no manifest necessity for a mistrial as to those counts, and therefore the Double Jeopardy protections of the federal and state Constitutions require that those counts not be retried" ^[2].

Dog bite evidence formed a central pillar of the defense's alternative theory of the case, according to Axios Boston ^[1]. Read's lawyers argued that O'Keefe entered the Canton home, owned by a fellow Boston police officer, where he was fatally beaten and possibly attacked by the family's German Shepherd, with the defense theory arising from a series of marks on O'Keefe's arm that Read's attorneys argued came from dog bites and scratches ^[4]. The defense relied on the testimony of veteran emergency room physician Dr. Marie Russell, who testified that the marks on O'Keefe's arm came from a canine attack, though prosecutors argued her testimony "cannot be reliably applied to the facts" and challenged her aggressively ^[4].

During a status hearing, Cannone proposed Jan. 14, 2025, for a pretrial conference and Jan. 27, 2025, as the new trial date ^[2]. The judge acknowledged that her ruling on the motion to dismiss would likely be appealed, adding that she scheduled the January 2025 date "in an effort to make sure we have plenty of time" ^[2]. The case had drawn significant public attention throughout, with the first trial producing more than 600 pieces of evidence and 70 witnesses before the deadlock brought proceedings to a halt.

References

[1] Axios Boston. (2024, July 22). Karen Read's next trial set for January 2025 in killing of boyfriend John O'Keefe. https://www.axios.com/local/boston/2024/07/22/karen-read-trial-murder-john-okeefe

[2] ABC News. (2024, July 23). Karen Read murder case: Judge sets 2025 date for retrial. https://abcnews.go.com/US/karen-read-murder-case-retrial-date/story?id=112173799

[3] CNN. (2025, May 5). How Karen Read's second murder trial has differed from the first. https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/05/us/karen-read-retrial-different

[4] The Boston Globe. (2025, June 5). What to know about Chloe, the dog at the center of the Karen Read trial this week. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/06/05/metro/karen-read-trial-dog/