Juror reveals why Karen Read walked free in boyfriend's death
One of the jurors who cleared Karen Read of murder charges in the death of Boston cop boyfriend John O'Keefe explained the panel's reasoning Thursday a day after her second trial came to a close The juror also explained brief confusion Wednesday afternoon that arose out of a verdict that jurors later retracted before it was read in court Judge Beverly Cannone sealed that one Within minutes jurors handed down a verdict for real Everything on that initial slip was the same as the slip that was presented Juror No identified only as Jason advised TMZ Live He declared they pulled the first slip back over the OUI charge operating under the influence of liquor of which jurors ascertained her guilty KAREN READ MURDER MATTER VERDICT REACHED AFTER DEADLOCKED FIRST TRIALWATCH Juror No 's interview In our deliberations we had decided there was enough evidence and proof that she was driving under the influence he noted Jurors ascertained Read not guilty of murder manslaughter and fleeing a deadly accident in a trial that stretched on for more than days of testimony and four days of deliberations The lesser included charge of OUI is the Massachusetts term for drunken driving I don't know what happened to John Jason stated I was only presented a limited scope of what happened at the night and I can only base my opinion off of the evidence that was shown in the courtroom So I don't really know if there was a cover-up or not I know that's the big conspiracy around it but I don't really know All I know is there was a lot of holes in the study Whether they were deliberate holes or not deliberate holes it's kinda hard for me sitting back to know that you know what veritably happened He revealed the defense claim that O'Keefe could have been killed by someone in the house in an attack that involved a dog was an example of reasonable doubt We were tasked with finding with deciding this person's fate based on the proof in the evidence that the commonwealth was able to present and there was a lot of holes he revealed He commented another pivotal factor for the jury was video that evidenced Read's taillight We could see from the car after the alleged episode happened when we could see the taillight it was lit up red where it shouldn't just have been red he noted I don't believe that the SUV collided with John O'Keefe Still he added there was no way for jurors to know whether asserts of a corrupt police scrutiny were true I don't know that there was any corruption going on he explained But do I know that there wasn't enough proof or evidence secured by the police to convict Karen Read Absolutely Also Thursday Massachusetts State Police brass broke their silence on the years-long affair marred by investigative missteps and the firing of a state trooper who played a central role in the matter Read was accused and acquitted of killing her boyfriend by slamming an SUV into him and leaving him to die on the ground during a blizzard after a drunken argument Jurors exposed her guilty only of drunken driving for which she received a sentence of one year probation and outpatient recovery Col Geoffrey Noble the state police commissioner commented the entire department sends its condolences to O'Keefe's family The events of the last three years have challenged our department to thoroughly review our actions and take concrete initiatives to deliver advanced investigative training ensure appropriate oversight and enhance accountability Noble disclosed in a declaration Under my direction as colonel the state police has and will continue to improve in these regards He commented the goal is to deliver excellent arrangement and maintain citizens trust GET REAL-TIME UPDATES DIRECTLY ON THE TRUE CRIME HUBJurors did not appear to trust the analysis after four days of deliberation when they rejected the prosecution's event almost entirely MASSACHUSETTS TROOPER MICHAEL PROCTOR TERMINATED FROM STATE POLICEThe lead investigator on the scenario former State Trooper Michael Proctor lost his job in March after an internal assessment concluded he shared confidential and sensitive law enforcement information with civilians in a group text the contents of which were also lewd in nature and mocked Read's vitality issues FOLLOW THE FOX TRUE CRIME UNIT ON XIt was Noble who reported the firing days before Read's second trial began Her first trial ended with a deadlocked jury last year after the texts were read in court and Read's defense exposed other glaring flaws in the assessment It is incumbent upon me as well as every member of this department to hold one another accountable when any member compromises our mission by failing to uphold our values he mentioned at the time SIGN UP TO GET THE TRUE CRIME NEWSLETTERNoble and the department were also sued by true crime reporters and particular of Read's supporters over the enforcement of a buffer zone around the Dedham courthouse that their lawyers called unconstitutional Separately local police in Canton Massachusetts were subjected to an external audit that recommended increased training and oversight while dispelling states of a conspiracy to frame Read for O'Keefe's death A federal study into the episode ended without charges against members of either law enforcement agency
