Karen Read prosecution dismantles defense timeline, leans on physical evidence to build case

Karen Read leaves court during a short recess during her murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (Mark Chavous/Enterprise News via AP, Pool)

As police forensic scientist Maureen Hartnett was being cross-examined by defense attorney Robert Alessi, Judge Beverly Cannone dismissed the the jury for the day in Karen Read’s trial.

An evidence photo shows an “apparent hair” found on the bumper of Karen Read’s Lexus SUV. (Pool)

Defense attorney Robert Alessi grilled State police forensic scientist Maureen Hartnett on the timeline of her investigation of Karen Read’s Lexus SUV after John O’Keefe’s death.

“So within that time period [of] just two hours, you found the pieces of glass and the apparent hair,” Alessi said. “And within that time, you did your examination, you made your notes - all of that done within just two hours?” 

“Yes,” Hartnett said. “That’s correct.” 

Alessi zeroed in on the hair found on the bumper of Read’s vehicle, asking Hartnett if it appears to have been moved while comparing two photographs. 

“One camera angle appears for whoever taking the photo will be standing off to the right of the vehicle,” Hartnett said. “The second photo looks like it’s more directly head-on.” 

Hartnett went on to testify that she cannot come to a conclusion regarding the possible movement of the hair by pointing to the different camera angles.

Mass. State Police forensic scientist Maureen Hartnett testifies about evidence gathered in the Karen Read murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court, Wednesday, May 14, 2025, in Dedham, Mass. (Mark Chavous/Enterprise News via AP, Pool)

State police forensic scientist Maureen Hartnett testified during cross-examination that the blood compiled in red Solo cups by authorities from the crime scene at 34 Fairview was never DNA tested. 

“So you left the rest of the brown stain blood evidence from the soda cups with the Canton Police Department,” defense attorney Robert Alessi said. “You didn’t take it back to your office or lab?”

“Correct,” Hartnett said.  

“DNA testing was not done on those swabs, was it?” Alessi asked. 

“I don’t believe it was,” Hartnett said. “No testing was done on those swabs.” 

“So, as we all sit here today, there has been no confirmation of whose blood those swabs relate to, correct?” Alessi said. 

“At this time, those were not tested for blood at all,” Hartnett said. “So I couldn’t confirm that they were blood and no additional testing was done.” 

Maureen Hartnett, a forensic scientist with the Massachusetts State Police, holds up pieces of taillight housing from Karen Read’s SUV during Read’s trial on Wednesday, May 15, 2025. (Pool)

Karen Read’s trial returned from a lunch break with Maureen Hartnett, a forensic scientist with the Massachusetts State Police, returning to the witness stand. 

Hartnett testified during direct examination by prosecutor Hank Brennan that she collected the entire taillight housing from Read’s Lexus SUV during authorities’ investigation into the death of John O’Keefe. 

While on the stand, Hartnett showed the jury pieces of the taillight housing obtained from Read’s vehicle before pointing to an evidence photograph to indicate where she swabbed for DNA during the investigation. 

Hartnett went on to identify photographs showing pieces of O'Keefe's clothing that she used to obtain DNA evidence and examine damage.

Maureen Hartnett, a forensic scientist with the Massachusetts State Police, points out pieces of glass found on the back bumper of Karen Read’s vehicle during authorities’ investigation into John O’Keefe’s death. (Pool)

Following testimony from Needham Police Sgt. Brian Gallerani, prosecutor Hank Brennan called Maureen Hartnett, a forensic scientist with the Massachusetts State Police, to the witness stand. 

Hartnett testified about her analysis of Karen Read’s Lexus SUV while authorities were investigating the death of John O’Keefe, including her findings on the bumper of Read’s vehicle. 

“There were scratches on the bumper, as well as apparent pieces of glass on the bumper,” Hartnett said. 

“When you saw what you believed to be pieces of glass on the back bumper, what is the process you follow?” Brennan asked. 

“I gave those an identifying letter,” Hartnett replied. “I noted those items in my diagram and then I eventually collected those items.” 

Brennan went on to show the jurors evidence photos of the bumper of Read’s vehicle, with Hartnett pointing out pieces of glass and scratches found on the back of the car. Hartnett also noted “one apparent piece of hair” found on the rear of the vehicle.

Needham Police Sgt. Brian Gallerani briefly testified regarding his collection of DNA samples from former investigator Michael Proctor and Sgt. Yuri Bukhenik during the investigation into the death of John O’Keefe. 

Gallerani testified during cross-examination that he was not tasked with gathering samples from Canton Police Department Detective Kevin Albert, Chief Kenneth Berkowitz and Lieutenant Brian Tully.

Karen Read's defense attorney David Yannetti addresses the court over a detail concern during Read's murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (Mark Chavous/Enterprise News via AP, Pool)

Upon returning from morning recess, prosecutor Adam Lally called Massachusetts State Police Sgt. Evan Brent. 

Brent was called to 34 Fairview on Feb. 3, 2022 to aid in the investigation surrounding the death of John O’Keefe by photographing the accumulated snow in the front yard and any evidence recovered by police. 

“As far as the items that were recovered, do you recall where they were in relation to the snow pile on the ground itself?” Lally asked. 

“Some were on top of the snow,” Brent said. “So there was some significant snow melt. I think that day it was raining out and it was much warmer than it was the previous three days. So some had been revealed by the melted snow lawyer on top. Others were under a foot and a half of snow.” 

Brent went on to testify he was then sent to O’Keefe’s home to photograph O’Keefe’s vehicle and the security camera mounted above the garage. 

Following Lally’s line of direct questioning, defense attorney David Yannetti began cross-examining Brent by pointing out the lapse of time between O’Keefe’s death and when he arrived at the home to photograph evidence. 

“You were photographing it five days after Jan. 29, 2022, correct?” Yannetti asked. 

“Yes, sir,” Brent answered. 

Yannetti then confirmed with Brent that former investigator Michael Proctor compiled Clark’s photos and notes before subsequently filing a report on their findings. 

Brent was then dismissed from the witness stand, with prosecutors calling Needham Police Sgt. Brian Gallerani to testify.

Detective Sgt. Zachary Clark of the Mass. State Police testifies during Karen Read's murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (Mark Chavous/Enterprise News via AP, Pool)

Following testimony from John O’Keefe’s niece, prosecutor Adam Lally called Massachusetts State Police Sgt. Zachary Clark to the witness stand. 

Clark was working with the state police’s crime scene services section when he was called to the Canton Police Headquarters on Feb. 1, 2022 to meet with former investigator Michael Proctor regarding the initial investigation into the death of John O’Keefe.

Upon arriving at the location, Clark was tasked with carrying out a search warrant of Karen Read’s Lexus SUV alongside Massachusetts State Police Forensic Scientist Maureen Hartnett. 

“My recollection is that [Hartnett] was chiefly concerned with the exterior of the vehicle,” Clark said. “Namely the rear right corner. She was looking for DNA and trace evidence, I believe.”

Clark testified he went on to process the vehicle’s front passenger area for DNA evidence but was unable to locate any usable fingerprints before traveling to 34 Fairview to gather photographs of the front yard. 

Lally then presented photos from the inside of Read’s vehicle showing the dashboard of the SUV. 

Following a short line of direct questioning, defense attorney David Yannetti began cross-examining Clark on his knowledge of Proctor’s friendship with Canton police detective Kevin Albert. 

“Did Michael Proctor reveal to you that he and Kevin Albert had socialized together by drinking alcohol in his [police] cruiser?” Yannetti asked. 

Before Clark could answer, the prosecution objected and Judge Beverly Cannone dismissed the jurors for morning recess.

The prosecution in Karen Read’s trial started the day off by playing a televised interview Read gave to Investigation Discovery on June 15, 2024. 

In the clip, Read dismisses the possibility that her boyfriend, John O’Keefe, could have started a fight with ATF agent Brian Higgins after Read and Higgins exchanged flirtatious text messages in the days leading up to O’Keefe’s death. 

“I don’t see how John would have known about my texts with Brian,” Read said. “I’m not sure if he knew, he would have reacted very strongly. I think we would have broken up, but I don’t think John would’ve lost it and caused a fight. I didn’t feel that John’s emotions with me got really strong.” 

Read’s statements directly conflict with defense attorney Alan Jackson’s suggestion that O’Keefe fought Higgins in a jealous rage in the hours before his death. 

"You were just asked about your opinion whether or not there was a motive that you found for Brian Higgins to want to murder John O'Keefe," Jackson asked Sgt. Yuri Bukhenik of the Massachusetts State Police on Monday. "I'm asking you a different question. Did you, in your mind, in your opinion, after having read those texts, find a motive for Brian Higgins, perhaps want to confront John O'Keefe because of jealousy?"

"If you're asking for my opinion, my opinion is that he wouldn't need to confront Mr. O'Keefe," Bukhenik said. "Mr. O'Keefe was not the one pursuing Mr. Higgins. It was your client that was pursuing Mr. Higgins."

Judge Beverly Cannone speaks to jurors before the start of the Karen Read murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Friday, May 9, 2025. (Mark Stockwell/The Sun Chronicle via AP, Pool)

Judge Beverly Cannone called Court into session Wednesday morning, kicking off Day 15 of testimony in Karen Read’s trial.

Norfolk Assistant District Attorney Laura McLaughlin began the day by calling the Commonwealth’s next witness, John O'Keefe's niece, to the stand.

Cannone previously issued a ruling barring the media from reporting the girl's identity and testimony, citing the fact that she is a juvenile.

Karen Read arrived at the Norfolk Superior Courthouse alongside her defense team on Wednesday morning to face Day 15 of her murder trial. 

As Read entered the courthouse , she flashed a thumbs up and told reporters she “feels great” after yesterday’s court session was unexpectedly cancelled due to “unavoidable circumstances.”

Prosecutor Hank Brenna, right, speaks with defense lawyer Alan Jackson during the Karen Read murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Friday, May 9, 2025. (Mark Stockwell/The Sun Chronicle via AP, Pool)

Karen Read's defense team opened the door to new evidence from a fight she got into with boyfriend John O'Keefe in the month before she allegedly killed him in a drunken hit-and-run that prosecutors say could illustrate the slaying as a "domestic violence homicide" and that she couldn't accept the victim's attempts to break up with her, according to a new court filing.

Alan Jackson, one of her lawyers, had Massachusetts State Police Sgt. Yuri Bukhenik read a string of text messages between the suspected killer and a potential romantic interest, ATF Agent Brian Higgins, who was present at a bar and after-party that Read and O'Keefe, a Boston police officer, visited the night O'Keefe was last seen alive.

"Where the defendant has opened the door, it is especially significant for the jury to understand that it was the defendant who repeatedly refused to accept the victim's desire [to] terminate their relationship, the defendants made repeated hostile accusations that the victim was having an affair, and that there was an established pattern of hostility, occurring in the weeks and days preceding the murder," special prosecutor Hank Brennan wrote. 

Because the texts discussed claims directly made by Read about O'Keefe in Aruba, Brennan is arguing that prosecutors now have a right to rebut her with evidence and witness testimony that contradicts her story. 

In the texts, Read flirted with Higgins behind her boyfriend's back, referred to herself as single, complained about O'Keefe's adopted children and claimed he "hooked up" with another woman in a hotel lobby.

Without mention of the Aruba incident, the prosecution wouldn't have had a chance to bring it up at trial.

"Four weeks prior to the murder, the defendant became enraged at the victim for speaking to a female friend who was on their group vacation in Aruba and accused the victim of having an affair," Brennan wrote in court filings Monday. "This incident was observed by numerous individuals who will testify to their personal observations of the incident as well as to statement of the defendant in the immediate aftermath."

Read the full story here.

Karen Read attends her murder retrial of Karen Read in Norfolk Superior Court, Monday, May 12, 2025, in Dedham, Mass. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

Testimony in Karen Read’s murder trial is expected to resume after Tuesday’s court session was unexpectedly canceled due to “unavoidable circumstances.” 

Special prosecutor Hank Brennan is set to call the Commonwealth’s next witness following three days of testimony from Massachusetts State Police Sgt. Yuri Bukhenik. 

Read is facing murder charges for the alleged killing of Boston police officer John O’Keefe and could spend the rest of her life in prison if convicted. 

Prosecutors allege Read struck O’Keefe with her Lexus SUV during a drunken argument in the early morning hours of Jan. 29, 2022 before leaving him to freeze to death in the front yard of 34 Fairview Road. However, Read’s defense team, led by attorney Alan Jackson, insists she never hit O'Keefe.