Pretrial Documents in Commonwealth v. Read Reveal Bloody Scene at Canton Discovery Site

Prosecutors in Norfolk County, Massachusetts were days from opening a high-profile murder trial when newly released court documents provided the most detailed account yet of the morning Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe was found unresponsive in the snow outside a Canton home. According to Axios Boston, 135 pages of previously sealed materials were made public in April 2024 at the request of the Boston Globe, following Norfolk Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone's order to unseal documents tied to the defense's unsuccessful motion to dismiss ^[1][2].

The documents, drawn from police reports filed by Canton officers Steven A. Saraf, Stephen Mullaney, and Michael J. Lank, describe a chaotic scene at 34 Fairview Road around 6 a.m. on Jan. 29, 2022 ^[2]. Officer Saraf arrived to find Karen Read administering CPR to O'Keefe, whose skin was cold to the touch and who was bleeding from the face, leaving Read with blood on her own face from performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation ^[2][5]. Sergeant Lank described Read as "hysterical," noting that the only statement she could make to officers on scene was that she did not remember being at 34 Fairview Road the night before ^[5].

Read faces a charge of second-degree murder, with prosecutors alleging she intentionally struck O'Keefe with her SUV after dropping him off at the party and left him to die ^[1]. Her charges also include manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol and leaving the scene of personal injury and death ^[4]. The newly released documents relate specifically to the defense's motion to dismiss on the grounds that the prosecution misled the grand jury leading up to Read's indictment ^[5]. The defense also sought dismissal in part because officers investigating the morning of O'Keefe's death had personal connections to guests at the party ^[1].

Read's lawyers and supporters contend she did not kill O'Keefe, and instead argue she is being framed as part of a broad conspiracy involving multiple law enforcement agencies, with defense attorneys further claiming O'Keefe was beaten by people at the party and possibly bitten by the residents' dog before being left outside ^[5]. According to Axios Boston, defense counsel advanced the dog-bite theory as part of its broader challenge to the Commonwealth's evidence ^[1]. Defense attorneys argued that O'Keefe had been attacked by homeowner Brian Albert's German shepherd, pointing to injuries on his arm that experts testified were consistent with dog bites ^[8]. Defense expert Dr. Marie Russell later testified that O'Keefe's arm wounds were "the result of dog bites and/or claw marks," offering that opinion to a reasonable degree of medical certainty ^[9].

Read's first trial, which began in April 2024 at Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, ended in a mistrial due to a "starkly divided" hung jury ^[1]. She was tried a second time beginning April 1, 2025, and was ultimately found not guilty on all three major charges, though she was convicted of operating a vehicle under the influence and received one year of probation ^[4].

References

[1] Axios Boston. (2024, April 12). New Karen Read documents on bloody morning John O'Keefe was found. https://www.axios.com/local/boston/2024/04/12/karen-read-documents-trial-john-okeefe-murder

[2] The Boston Globe. (2024, April 10). Unsealed documents show harrowing hours after victim's body found. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/04/10/metro/karen-read-update-john-okeefe/

[3] NPR. (2025, June 18). Karen Read's second murder trial ends with an acquittal. https://www.npr.org/2025/06/18/nx-s1-5435406/karen-read-acquitted-trial-verdict-not-guilty

[4] Wikipedia / Death of John O'Keefe. (2025). Death of John O'Keefe. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_John_O%27Keefe

[5] CBS Boston. (2024). A timeline of the Karen Read case. https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/karen-read-trial-timeline-john-okeefe/