Current:Home > StocksHearing in Karen Read case expected to focus on jury deliberations-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
Hearing in Karen Read case expected to focus on jury deliberations
View Date:2024-12-23 15:59:43
DEDHAM, Mass. (AP) — Defense attorneys for Karen Read are expected to argue Friday that two charges in the death of her Boston police officer be dismissed, focusing on the jury deliberations that led to a mistrial.
Read is accused of ramming into John O’Keefe with her SUV and leaving him for dead in a snowstorm in January 2022. Her two-month trial ended when jurors declared they were hopelessly deadlocked and a judge declared a mistrial on the fifth day of deliberations.
A new trial is set to begin Jan. 27.
In several motions since the mistrial, the defense contends four jurors have said the jury unanimously reached a not guilty verdict on second-degree murder and leaving the scene of a deadly accident and were deadlocked on the remaining manslaughter charge. Trying her again on those two charges would be unconstitutional double jeopardy, they said.
They also reported that one juror told them “no one thought she hit him on purpose or even thought she hit him on purpose.”
The defense also argues Judge Beverly Cannone abruptly announced the mistrial without questioning jurors about where they stood on each of the three charges Read faced and without giving lawyers for either side a chance to comment.
Prosecutors described the defense’s request to drop charges of second-degree murder and leaving the scene of a deadly accident as an “unsubstantiated but sensational post-trial claim” based on “hearsay, conjecture and legally inappropriate reliance as to the substance of jury deliberations.”
But in another motion, prosecutors acknowledged they received a voicemail from someone who identified themselves as a juror and confirmed the jury had reached a unanimous decision on the two charges. Subsequently, they received emails from three individuals who also identified themselves as jurors and wanted to speak to them anonymously.
Prosecutors said they responded by telling the trio that they welcomed discussing the state’s evidence in the case but were “ethically prohibited from inquiring as to the substance of your jury deliberations.” They also said they could not promise confidentiality.
As they push against a retrial, the defense wants the judge to hold a “post-verdict inquiry” and question all 12 jurors if necessary to establish the record they say should have been created before the mistrial was declared, showing jurors “unanimously acquitted the defendant of two of the three charges against her.”
Prosecutors argued the defense was given a chance to respond and, after one note from the jury indicating it was deadlocked, told the court there had been sufficient time and advocated for the jury to be declared deadlocked. Prosecutors wanted deliberations to continue, which they did before a mistrial was declared the following day.
“Contrary to the representation made in the defendant’s motion and supporting affidavits, the defendant advocated for and consented to a mistrial, as she had adequate opportunities to object and instead remained silent which removes any double jeopardy bar to retrial,” prosecutors wrote in their motion.
Read, a former adjunct professor at Bentley College, had been out drinking with O’Keefe, a 16-year member of the Boston police who was found outside the Canton, Massachusetts, home of another Boston police officer. An autopsy found O’Keefe died of hypothermia and blunt force trauma.
The defense contended O’Keefe was killed inside the home after Read dropped him off and that those involved chose to frame her because she was a “convenient outsider.”
veryGood! (163)
Related
- MLS Star Marco Angulo Dead at 22 One Month After Car Crash
- U.S. issues hundreds of new Russia sanctions over Alexey Navalny's death and war in Ukraine
- 2 officers shot and killed a man who discharged a shotgun, police say
- You can get a dozen doughnuts from Krispy Kreme for $2.29 on Leap Day. Here's how.
- Here's what 3 toys were inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame this year
- When is forgetting normal — and when is it worrisome? A neuroscientist weighs in
- Hungary’s parliament ratifies Sweden’s NATO bid, clearing the final obstacle to membership
- These Cheap Products Will Make Your Clothes, Shoes, Bags & More Look Brand New
- Where is 'College GameDay' for Week 12? Location, what to know for ESPN show
- What MLB spring training games are today? Full schedule Monday and how to watch
Ranking
- Will Trump curb transgender rights? After election, community prepares for worst
- Wild weather’s coming: West readies for snow as Midwest gets a taste of summer
- How To Get Expensive-Looking Glass Hair on a Budget With Hacks Starting at Just $7
- West Virginia Senate passes bill that would remove marital exemption for sexual abuse
- Diamond Sports Group can emerge out of bankruptcy after having reorganization plan approved
- Purdue, Houston, Creighton lead winners and losers from men's college basketball weekend
- 15-year-old from Massachusetts arrested in shooting of Vermont woman found in a vehicle
- Consumers are increasingly pushing back against price increases — and winning
Recommendation
-
Disease could kill most of the ‘ohi‘a forests on Hawaii’s Big Island within 20 years
-
This Toddler's Viral Golden Girls Hairstyle Is, Well, Pure Gold
-
2024 second base rankings: Iron man Marcus Semien leads AL, depth rules NL
-
3 charged in ‘targeted’ shooting that killed toddler at a Wichita apartment, police say
-
These Michael Kors’ Designer Handbags Are All Under $150 With an Extra 22% off for Singles’ Day
-
Americans are spending the biggest share of their income on food in 3 decades
-
How The Underground Railroad Got Its Name
-
US sues to block merger of grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons, saying it could push prices higher