Family Member of John O'Keefe Speaks Out to ‘Dateline' Following Karen Read Verdict

In tonight's special Dateline at 9 p.m. ET, a member of John O'Keefe's extended family reacts to yesterday's verdict in the Karen Read trial: 'It was definitely not what I was looking for.'June 19, 2025

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Daily Mail​

a day ago

• Daily Mail​

EXCLUSIVE FBI is still probing cops over 'shoddy' Karen Read investigation, claims 35-year police veteran: 'They're playing the long game'

An ex-federal agent believes that the FBI is 'playing the long game' while investigating possible police corruption surrounding the death of Boston cop John O'Keefe – just days after his girlfriend Karen Read was sensationally cleared of killing him. Glamorous Read, 45, was found not guilty of the January 2022 murder after jurors rejected the prosecution's argument that she deliberately hit him with her SUV when she dropped him at a house party and left him to die in the snow. Her defense team alleged that Read was the victim of an elaborate plot by local Boston law enforcement to frame her, claiming O'Keefe was killed by other police officers from Canton, Massachusetts, who were at the gathering. Sean McDonough, a 35-year veteran of law enforcement, told he believes that a probe into the bungled Massachusetts State Police investigation has been a long time coming. 'This is definitely not justice for John O'Keefe nor his family. That's number one,' McDonough, who spent 28 years with the DEA and seven years as a Washington DC-area cop and crime scene investigator, told the Daily Mail. 'In my opinion, based on my 28 years' experience as a federal agent, I wholeheartedly believe that they are still investigating. 'How it happened, I don't know, but I can tell you based on the shoddiness of that investigation – favors were called in. 'It's a public corruption case and civil rights violations case, and I just believe – as we said many times in my career – we hold the time, we hold the stopwatch, and anytime we want, we can stop it. 'So I believe they're playing the long game.' Following the verdict, Colonel Geoffrey Noble of the Massachusetts State Police confirmed the case had caused the department to 'thoroughly review' their actions, He added that they had 'taken concrete steps to deliver advanced investigative training, ensure appropriate oversight, and enhance accountability. 'Under my direction as colonel, the State Police has, and will continue to, improve in these regards,' Noble said. 'Our focus remains on delivering excellent police services that reflect the value of professionalism and maintain public trust.' After Read's first trial last year ended in a hung jury, the case garnered national attention amid scrutiny over Read's claims that some of the investigators planted evidence and covered up for other suspects. O'Keefe, 46, was found dead outside the home of retired Boston Police officer Brian Albert, after Read had dropped him off for a house party. Karen Read 'got drunk, she hit him, she left him to die. It's that simple,' prosecutor Hank Brennan told the jury in Dedham, Massachusetts O'Keefe's cause of death was listed as blunt force trauma and hypothermia after police say he was left outside in a blizzard. At the center of Read's defense are claims that the investigation was inappropriately handled by dishonorably discharged State Trooper Michael Proctor, who sent vulgar text messages about Read. He was fired over texts that included calling Read a 'whack job' and a 'c***.' In other messages, he joked about rummaging through her phone for nude photos during the investigation, and remarked that she had 'no a**.' Proctor appeared on Dateline NBC this week and denied that he had framed Read. 'It did not happen,' he said. 'I would never do something like that.' In his closing arguments, defense attorney Alan Jackson hit out at Proctor, arguing that the prosecution could only feign a case because 'their investigation was flawed from the start because their investigator was corrupted from the start by bias, personal loyalties.' He also argued that experts agree 'there was no collision,' and concluded by saying 'reasonable doubt abounds.' But prosecutor Hank Brennan said the story of how O'Keefe died was 'simple.' 'Ms. Read was with Mr. O'Keefe and she got drunk. She drank. She was two to three times over the legal limit and they went to a party, an afterparty and they were fighting. '...She got drunk, she hit him, she left him to die. It's that simple.' Many of those at the party released a statement calling the verdict a miscarriage of justice. The witnesses who signed the statement included Jennifer McCabe, who made the infamous 'How long to die in cold' Internet search in the early morning hours of O'Keefe's death, and Brian Albert, who owned the home where the party took place. 'While we may have more to say in the future, today we mourn with John's family and lament the cruel reality that this prosecution was infected by lies and conspiracy theories spread by Karen Read, her defense team, and some in the media. The result is a devastating miscarriage of justice,' the statement said. Brian Albert told ABC News that he had been called a murderer daily, with Matt McCabe adding: 'Anyone who has touched this case has been accused of murder at some point.' His wife Jennifer interrupted by claiming that in many people's view 'anyone who is friends with us supports cop killers'. Albert denied that O'Keefe entered his home at all during the blizzard, and they were unaware of what transpired until O'Keefe's body was discovered at 6.30am the following day. Jennifer's internet search for 'how long to die in the cold' prior to O'Keefe's body being found became central to the defense. Prosecutors argued that there was no evidence that O'Keefe ever went in the house, however forensic investigators never took evidence from inside Albert's home, muddying theories over whether he was beaten inside. Read and O'Keefe had been drinking heavily on the night he died, and voice messages she left him that night where she fumed over their turbulent relationship were also played in court. The couple had been dating for two years at the time of O'Keefe's death. He had been with the Boston Police Department for 16 years. Speculation of a continuing FBI probe has been rife after Read was cleared Wednesday of killing her boyfriend. McDonough believes that following the not guilty verdict, the FBI will still be looking into the case – telling the agency 'never confirms anything'. 'The FBI is small', he told 'You've got to play well with the locals, the state police, all the different local agencies. 'So my assessment is they took an incredible, massive swing, not only at state police investigators that did the investigation, John O'Keefe, the witnesses that they used, in their case. 'So as a federal agent, I'm thinking, the Feds would never, ever walk away without having something concrete. 'Now, that's my opinion, because of the political nature, they have to work with those guys,' McDonough added. 'They have to be a team player. 'Unless Hank wants to out the alleged person who said the investigation is over, I don't believe it. 'I think with the new administration, my suspicion, that I think they said, Well, we're going to have to kind of draw this back, because, we've got to give this air of maybe that we're not investigating and maybe they're not investigating a certain aspect.' Read's case sharply divided opinions in Boston and the true crime community, with the accused gaining an ardent following who gathered at court during her trial. 'Free Karen Read' supporters were such a presence at her trial that the judge ordered they be kept 500 feet away from the courthouse and banned attendees inside the court from wearing pink, a color chosen to show support for Read. Huge cheers erupted outside the trial as the not guilty verdict was read on Wednesday, with Read thanking her supporters in a speech from the courthouse steps soon after. 'I could not be standing here without these amazing supporters,' she said. 'No one has fought harder for justice for John O'Keefe than I have.' Read was found not guilty on charges of second-degree murder and manslaughter, but was convicted of operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol. John Comeau, who grew up in Canton with the Alberts, told that he wasn't surprised to hear allegations of a drunken fight and cover up by the group. 'I think there was a drunken fight gone wrong and a lot of panic,' he said. 'All you need is the people at the top, and then everybody else is just a yes man following orders, not knowing what's really going on. 'So it's not a full-blown conspiracy. It's a bunch of people that are doing as they told but the other people are the ones that know.' 'It's sad that you can't have both justice for John and have Karen be free, because everyone will always be looking at her until there is proper investigation. 'A lot of us in town believe the FBI investigation is still ongoing through our own sources.'

Daily Mail​

2 days ago

• Daily Mail​

What comes next for Karen Read? Acquitted of murder and exalted to social media stardom... but not free from the courtroom just yet

Karen Read is not going to jail for the murder of her Boston cop boyfriend John O'Keefe, but she's far from out of the woods or out of the courtroom when it comes to the controversial case. Read 45, sobbed on Wednesday after being acquitted of murder for her police officer boyfriend in a retrial that has gripped and divided America. But the happy tears in the Massachusetts criminal courtroom merely closed a chapter on the ordeal rather than the whole book with Read still a long way from returning to a normal life. Now legal eagles and PR executives have weighed in on what comes next for the financial analyst. DUI Conviction While Read was cleared of the most serious charge stemming from the January 29, 2022 death she still faced some legal repercussions. The financial analyst was convicted on the lesser charge of drunk driving, which carries a maximum penalty of 2.5 years for a first offense. However, at sentencing she was handed one year of probation and ordered to take alcohol awareness classes. Probation for the offense in Massachusetts typically includes 30 hours of community service. The penalty is the standard one handed down to a first time offender. Many high-profile defendants walk away with book deals to give a first-person account of what really happened behind the scenes. Although it is unclear if Read has been offered one, or if she's even interested in one, it could continue to help her star rise after becoming a household name due to the trial. Netflix and HBO have already covered her trial in documentaries, leaving the window wide open for Read to join one. Criminal jurors have already started coming forward with their takes and opinions on the case and Read could very much do the same now that she can no longer face a murder charge for O'Keefe's death. However, if Read does choose to step into the spotlight further, any money she makes off the endeavors could be garnished if she loses her upcoming civil case with O'Keefe's family and has to pay damages. Civil Case Read's acquittal is far from the end of the grueling legal process and she is now facing another round in court. Read and her legal team are gearing up for a civil trial - a $50,000 wrongful death lawsuit filed by O'Keefe's family against her and two local bars. 'After a not-guilty verdict against Read, a civil case is all the family has left if they want to seek justice,' New Mexico-based lawyer, John W. Day, told 'The O'Keefe family will want this civil trial to move forward quickly while people are still talking about the verdict.' No date has been set for the trial yet, as it was put on pause while Read dealt with her criminal case. The case was filed against Read and two local bars - CF McCarthy's and Waterfall Bar and Grille - in August 2024 in the Plymouth Superior Court in Brockton and the family is seeking at least $50,000 in damages for O'Keefe's death. They argue Read engaged in reckless conduct that resulted in O'Keefe's death and that the bars, 'negligently served alcohol to an intoxicated person.' Many experts told Daily Mail that it would be beneficial for Read to push through the civil case as early as possible as her stronger-than-ever fanbase is ready to defend her. Tom Flaws, a Boston-based lawyer with the firm Altman Nussbaum Shunnarah, told Daily Mail that the O'Keefe family has a 'much lower bar to prove' that Read killed their son compared to the state in the criminal case. But that doesn't mean it will be an easy win for the heartbroken family, especially as Read's fanbase stays strong and criminal jurors continue to come out and cast doubt that the 45-year-old did it. 'That's a problem for the plaintiffs of the civil case,' Flaws said. Whereas, in a criminal trial, the State of Massachusetts had to prove Read performed a criminal act beyond a reasonable doubt. In the civil case, the O'Keefe family only has to prove that their version of events is plausible based on the preponderance of the evidence. If they can prove there is a more than a 50 percent chance of probability, they can win. 'It's a much lower burden,' Flaws, who has 20 years experience in the field, said. 'It's a bigger challenge for her [Read],' Florida-based lawyer, Emmanuel Galimidi, told Galimidi, who owns his own firm Galimidi Law, also believes the criminal jurors' opinions will influence her civil case. 'I don't see how they don't,' he said. 'That would influence me.' Considering how big the case became, Galimidi thinks there will be a good chance the local jurors picked for the civil trial will have at least heard of or be familiar with the case and will know the verdict of the criminal trial. 'Jury selection in very important,' the lawyer, who has 22 years of law experience and worked both on the plaintiffs and defendants' sides, said. 'In this one, it's much more important.' He also expects, regardless of the verdict, there will be an appeal made 'due to the nature of the case.' Tom Flaws, a Boston-based lawyer, told that the O'Keefe family has a 'much lower bar to prove' that Read killed their son compared to the state in the criminal case. Eric Schiffer said Read needs to rapidly change her reputation before entering another courtroom Obstacles The biggest difference - and perhaps an obstacle for Read - will be her deposition. Unlike her criminal case, she will have to take the stand and it will be the first time jurors and crime junkies alike will hear her side of the story directly from the source. Just because prosecutors couldn't prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Read hit O'Keefe with her car, it does not mean she did not. Her late boyfriend's law enforcement officer status only increased scrutiny on her actions. 'It plays a role [in her reputation],' Schiffer said. 'It's hard to undo.' Schiffer said Read will need to be 'extremely' careful while on the stand during her deposition to keep her reputation intact. 'She's probably better off doing [the trial] now, coming off the win,' Eric Schiffer, who helps high-profile people fix their reputations, told 'She needs to take every word seriously. Things can go boom.' Despite the buzz around her upcoming deposition, Galimidi doesn't expect to hear anything he hasn't already. 'I don't expect there to be any big revelation here,' he said. Damages Although the O'Keefe family filed for at least $50,000 in damages, they could be awarded a far higher sum. The question comes down to who can pay it for both the bars and Read. Although a jury can decide how much each defendant has to pay, if they don't have it, the family could be chasing it for years, especially with Read, who is a private citizen. 'Remember that this is how the Goldman family and Nicole Simpson's family went after OJ Simpson after he was acquitted or murder,' Day told 'They got a $33million judgment against OJ, but then had to try to collect on it.' 'One issue the family could face: What can they get from Karen Read, or is she judgment-proof? Meaning, what assets does she have that the family could get in a civil judgment?' A potential asset they family could garnish from is if Read is offered a book deal. They could tap into her royalties for years. Another way they could get money from Read, if she doesn't have the damages amount, is to garnish her wages. There are state limitations on what percentage can be taken out of her paychecks. 'You can try and garnish,' Galimidi said. 'That's entirely possible.' Galimidi suspects the O'Keefe family may or may not have bought in the two bars as collateral, as the establishments more than likely have insurance plans that will help cover them and offer a higher damages amount to the family. However, the locally-owned establishments might not have much in insurance, compared to big-named chained. 'There's a difference suing IBM versus Joe's Computer Shop [down the street],' the Florida lawyer said. He also believes the family has a good case against the bars for serving her an abundance of alcohol. 'It's a strong case against the bars,' he told 'It's a strong one for the plaintiffs because of her blood-alcohol [level].' However, Flaws said the plaintiffs still have to 'prove that she hit him' to prevail. Reputation Rehabilitation As the verdict was read out on Wednesday, cheers were heard outside the courthouse from her hoard of supporters, however experts warn Read has a long way to go before she can shake off the controversy. Read made headlines throughout the trial for her outlandish behavior during the case, which included winking at cameras and laughing and joking with her counsel in court. Schiffer said Read's name is a 'punch line' at the moment and she absolutely have to fix her public image before stepping back in the court. 'She's been shredded online,' Schiffer told He thinks it's 'critical' for Read to rapidly patch up the 'scraps' of her reputation prior to her civil trial as the burden of proof is much, much lower compared to a criminal case. 'That's her biggest challenge,' he said. If she loses the civil case, Schiffer said her reputation will experience 'spontaneous combustion.' 'It's not a death blow, but it will hobble her,' he said. And even if she wins, her reputation won't magically pop back either as many will accuse her of being of being 'famous for the wrong reasons,' he said. 'It's a good case, but it could be worse,' Galimidi said.

The Independent

2 days ago

• The Independent

Investigator and jurors speak out about Karen Read murder trial in aftermath of not guilty verdict

Two jurors and the lead investigator in murder trial of Karen Read have come forward to comment about the case since a jury returned a not guilty verdict earlier this week. Read, 45, was charged with second-degree murder by authorities who said she intentionally hit Boston police officer John O'Keefe with her car after a night of drinking in the suburbs. The high-profile case culminated in a not guilty verdict on murder, manslaughter and leaving the scene charges Wednesday. The jury found Read guilty of operating a vehicle while under the influence. The trial has centered in part on lead investigator Michael Proctor, who defense attorneys described as biased against Read from the beginning. The State Police Trial Board found Proctor guilty of sending crude and defamatory text messages about Read while leading the investigation into her. He was fired and has drawn ire from Read supporters who believe he played a key role in a cover-up to frame her. Proctor told NBC 's 'Dateline' that the idea he is corrupt and framed Read is a 'ridiculous' accusation. He specifically said an accusation that he cracked Read's taillight to make it look like she backed into O'Keefe is 'absolutely not" true. 'I laugh because it's such a ridiculous accusation,' Proctor told the program. 'There's not one piece of evidence or fact to support that because it did not happen.' The judge in the case announced via court papers Wednesday that the jurors' names would be sealed from public view due to safety concerns. But one of the jurors, who identified himself only as 'Jason' in an interview with TMZ, said he did not believe Read collided with O'Keefe. He also said he did not think investigators planted taillight pieces at the scene to frame Read. 'I don't really know if there was a cover-up or not. I know that's the big conspiracy about it but I don't really know. All I know is there was a lot of holes in their investigation,' the juror said. Another juror, Paula Prado, told local news stations her mind changed about the case over the course of the last three weeks. At first, she thought Read was guilty of manslaughter, but her opinion changed as the case progressed. 'As the weeks passed by, I just realized there was too many holes that we couldn't fill. And there's nothing that put her at the scene in our opinion, despite just dropping John O'Keefe off,' Prado told media. Massachusetts State Police said in a statement that it extends its 'sincerest condolences to the loved ones of Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe.' The statement said the the events of the last three years have 'challenged' the department to reviews it actions and improve accountability and oversight. 'Under my direction as colonel, the state police has, and will continue to, improve in these regards. Our focus remains on delivering excellent police services that reflect the value of professionalism and maintain public trust,' Colonel Geoffrey Noble said in the statement. The jurors, state police and Proctor are not the first to speak out about the verdict. Some of the key witnesses in the trial released a joint statement Wednesday in which they called the not guilty ruling a 'devastating miscarriage of justice.' The joint statement was issued by several people including Brian Albert, who owned the home where the party took place, and Jennifer McCabe, Albert's sister-in-law, who was with Read and O'Keefe on the night of O'Keefe's death. Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey said only: 'The jury has spoken.'