The jury for the second trial of Karen Read, accused of murder, wrapped up their initial day of deliberations on Monday, yet were unable to agree on a verdict. Massachusetts resident Read is on trial for allegedly causing the death of her boyfriend, who served in the Boston police force. After considerable deliberation, Judge Beverly Cannone adjourned proceedings for the day, instructing the jury members to return on Tuesday at 9 a.m, fully rejuvenated for further discussions.
The group of twelve jurors first took up the task of determining Read’s fate on Friday, June 13, deliberating for roughly two hours. This came after the conclusion of closing summaries by attorneys in the prolonged eight-week judicial retrial concerning this murder case.
By late Monday afternoon at 4:25 p.m., the jurors had conducted over nine hours of intense debate and deliberation. However, they were still unable to achieve a consensus on their decision. A plea of ‘not guilty’ has been presented by Read, a 45-year-old woman, on all three counts against her.
These charges include second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter under the influence, and departing the vicinity of a fatal collision. The prosecutors assert that Read ran over John O’Keefe with her Lexus SUV following an evening of alcohol consumption in the early weeks of 2022.
The defense for Read is putting forth the argument that she was falsely implicated in the incident due to subpar and prejudiced investigation methods. Alan Jackson, one of Read’s lawyers, employed a critical rhetoric in his concluding remarks to the jurors, setting them up to question the validity of the evidence.
In his final appeal to the jurors, Jackson stated that their faith in the charges against Read needed to be ‘unshakeable’ for them to pronounce her guilty. The conclusion of this second trial follows almost a year since the initialization of the first case against her.
The initial proceedings ended inconclusively, with a hung jury unable to unanimously decide on the validity of the counts put forth against Read. Apart from the official trial, the case has witnessed some scenes of mass support for Read outside the courthouse.
On Monday, masses of supporters decked out entirely in pink, reportedly Read’s color of choice, gathered outside the Dedham, Massachusetts courthouse. Their purpose was to demonstrate their solidarity with Read, as they anxiously anticipated the jury’s verdict.
Such public demonstrations have grown increasingly regular with this case, signifying the high degree of public interest it has accumulated over the years. The extended legal battle around Read’s case has captured widespread attention, becoming a subject of extensive discussion and speculation among the population.