Read was accused of killing her boyfriend in January 2022.
The judge in Karen Read’s murder trial has declared a mistrial after the jury said it was unable to reach unanimous consensus on the fifth day of deliberations on Monday.
Read was charged with the murder of her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O’Keefe, in January 2022.
Prosecutors say she hit O’Keefe with her car and left him to die in the middle of a snowstorm after the two argued earlier in the day. Read has vigorously denied the allegations, and his lawyers have claimed that a fellow police officer was involved in O’Keefe’s death and colluded with others to cover up the affair.
She had pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, manslaughter while operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol and leaving the scene of a fatal accident.
After jurors told the court earlier Monday that they had been unable to reach a consensus, Judge Beverly Cannone read Tuey-Rogriguez’s instructions to them and invited them to resume their deliberations. According to Tuey-Rogriguez, the judge would be forced to declare a mistrial if the jury came back undecided once again.
In a memo to the court Monday afternoon, the jury said it was unable to reach unanimous consensus despite an exhaustive deliberation process.
“Despite our rigorous efforts, we find ourselves at an impasse,” the note, read aloud by Cannone, said. “The deep division is not due to a lack of consideration but to a strict adherence to our personal convictions and moral principles. Further deliberation would be futile.”
In response, Cannone said: “Your service is over. I declare a mistrial.”
A status conference has been scheduled for July 22 in the case.
The Norfolk District Attorney’s Office announced plans to retry the case.
“We would first like to thank the O’Keefe family for their commitment and dedication throughout this lengthy process,” the district attorney’s office said in a statement. “They have not lost sight of the true heart of this case: bringing justice to John O’Keefe.”
Outside the courthouse in Dedham, Massachusetts, Read’s lawyers said they would not stop the fighting.
“My friends, this is what it looks like when you make false accusations against an innocent person,” his lawyer, Alan Jackson, told reporters. “The Commonwealth did its best. They put the weight of the state on false accusations, based on compromised investigations, investigators and witnesses. This is what it looks like. And guess what? They failed. They have failed miserably, and they will continue to fail. »
News Source : abcnews.go.com
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