Hearing in Karen Read case after defense blasts prosecution’s request for phone records

DEDHAM, Mass. — The judge presiding over the Karen Read murder case heard several key motions on Tuesday as the prosecution and defense continue to prepare for the Mansfield woman’s upcoming retrial.

Norfolk Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone heard arguments on Special Prosecutor Hank Brennan’s request to review the phone records of Read’s parents, William Read and Janet Read.

Brennan has stated in court filings that it’s imperative to view the phone records because data shows Read called and texted her mother and her father several times after she allegedly struck and killed her Boston Police Officer boyfriend, John O’Keefe, outside a home in Canton during a blizzard in January 2022.

The prosecution alleges William Read has made conflicting statements about conversations with his daughter and they plan to call him as a witness at the next trial. Brennan has also stated that Janet Read’s phone records “must be made available” due to “potential impeachment evidence.”

Read’s legal team stated its intention to fight the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office motions in subsequent filings.

The defense claims prosecutors already have records of calls between Karen Read and her father from Karen’s phone, calling Brennan’s push a “fishing expedition” and “an inappropriate attempt to invade privacy.”

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Read’s lawyers have also requested that Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey produce all of his personal emails and text messages.

Read’s trial ended in July when hopelessly deadlocked jurors told Cannone they couldn’t come to a unanimous decision, leading to a mistrial.

The SJC is currently determining if jurors who sat through Read’s first trial for the death of John O’Keefe will be questioned about their deliberations. The SJC will issue a written decision that could take four months before it is published.

Read’s lawyers have been fighting to dismiss her second-degree murder and leaving the scene of a deadly crash charge for double jeopardy reasons. Double jeopardy is a legal protection that prohibits anyone from being prosecuted twice for the same crime.

Read is accused of hitting O’Keefe with her SUV and leaving him to die after a night of drinking. The defense has sought to portray Read as the victim, saying O’Keefe was actually killed inside Brian Albert’s home and then dragged outside and left for dead.

Morrissey’s office opposes Read’s bid to get the charges dropped and argues that Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone was correct when she ruled all of Read’s charges should remain for her retrial.

Cannone has scheduled Read’s retrial for January 2025.

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