DEDHAM, Mass. — One of the 12 jurors who acquitted Karen Read of murder in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend, John O’Keefe, said the Commonwealth and investigators assigned to the high-profile case failed to do their jobs.
After weeks of testimony and four days of deliberations, the Norfolk Superior Court jury acquitted Read of second-degree murder and manslaughter after her second trial.
Juror No. 11, Paula Prado, is a Brazilian-based attorney who moved to Massachusetts in February of last year. In the wake of the verdict, she said she was compelled to come forward because she truly felt Read was innocent.
“Karen Read was innocent. The Commonwealth and the investigation couldn’t actually prove and show enough evidence to make us convict her of anything,” Paula Prado told Boston 25’s April Baker. “It wasn’t her fault, and I hope they find who did it.”
While there were some disagreements among jurors, everyone was able to find common ground when all was said and done, according to Prado.
“Most of us were on the same page...We were shocked by so many holes in the case that was presented to us,” Prado said. “We had some disagreements...We talked through it, we were very respectful of each other, and we came out with an agreement.”
Watch Prado’s full interview:
Similar to juror No. 4, Prado said damage to the taillight on Read’s Lexus SUV was an integral piece of evidence that helped her clear Read of the most serious charges in the case.
“We couldn’t make the damage on the taillight, the original taillight, compatible with the injuries on his [John O’Keefe’s] body,” Prado explained. “Having a close look at the taillight helped me a lot, and I’m sure the other jurors too.”
When asked if there was a turning point during the retrial that made her question the prosecution’s case against Read, Prado pointed to Dr. Judson Welcher, an accident reconstructionist who said he bought an SUV similar to Read’s to conduct experiments.
“Dr. Welcher, the crash reconstruction expert, seemed a little off,” Prado said of Welcher. “When ARCCA came in and gave a good accident reconstruction to us, it made sense.”
Just like Read’s lawyer, David Yannetti, said after the verdict, Prado feels that something happened inside Brian Albert’s home at 34 Fairview Road in Canton on Jan. 29, 2022, and that whoever is responsible for O’Keefe’s death is still out there.
“Something happened inside the house, and he was placed outside,” Prado said. “We didn’t hear from the owner of the house or Brian Higgins, who allegedly had some sort of involvement with Karen Read prior. I mean, the spotlight for me is on them.”
Prado said the jury’s deliberations really heated up on Monday and that everyone ultimately left the courthouse on verdict day feeling like “they did the right thing.”
Prado also shared a message for the O’Keefe family.
“Please, keep fighting. We really don’t think it was Karen Read. The investigation was sloppy, believe that. Look at yourself and keep fighting to find out who did this to him, because he seemed to be a very nice guy.”
Prado stopped short of calling the investigation a “coverup.”
“I’m not going to say it was a coverup, but it was a sloppy effort...Lazy, I would say, too,” Prado said. “But if it was a coverup, let’s find out.”
Read was accused by the prosecution of striking John O’Keefe with her SUV and leaving him to die alone in a blizzard outside of a house party in Canton at Albert’s home, a fellow officer, following a night of drinking.
Read’s lawyers argued that O’Keefe was beaten, bitten by a dog, then left outside Albert’s home in a conspiracy orchestrated by the police that included planting evidence against Read.
The jury did convict Read of drunken driving. She faces a year of probation as punishment.
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