The Karen Read murder case ends in a mistrial. Prosecutors say they will try again

DEDHAM, Mass. (AP) — A judge declared a mistrial Monday after jurors deadlocked in the polarizing and much-watched case of Karen Read, a woman accused of striking her Boston police officer boyfriend with her SUV and leaving him to die in a snowstorm.

Prosecutors say they intend to retry the case in which the defense asserted that Read had been framed by police.

On the fifth day of deliberation, jurors sent Judge Beverly Cannone a note saying they remained at an impasse in the case involving the January 2022 death of John O'Keefe. Within moments, a trial that had lasted two months and featured over 600 pieces of evidence and more than 70 witnesses was over.

“Folks, this is what it looks like when you bring false charges against an innocent person,” defense attorney Alan Jackson told reporters on the steps of the courthouse. “The commonwealth did their worst. They brought the weight of the state based on spurious charges, based on compromised investigation and investigators and compromised witnesses. Guess what, they failed.”

Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey thanked the O'Keefe family in a statement “for their commitment and dedication to this long process.”

“They maintained sight of the true core of this case — to find justice for John O’Keefe,” Morrissey said.

Read, a former adjunct professor at Bentley College, faced second-degree murder and other charges in the death of O’Keefe, a 16-year member of the Boston police who was found outside a Canton home of another Boston police officer. An autopsy found O’Keefe died of hypothermia and blunt force trauma.

Prosecutors said Read and O’Keefe had been drinking heavily before she dropped him off at a party at the home of Brian Albert, a fellow officer. They said she hit him with her SUV before driving away.

The defense sought to portray Read as the victim, saying O’Keefe was actually killed inside Albert’s home and then dragged outside. They argued that investigators focused on Read because she was a “convenient outsider” who saved them from having to consider other suspects, including Albert and other law enforcement officers at the party.

On Friday, a jury foreperson told the judge that they hadn’t reached a unanimous verdict despite an “exhaustive review of the evidence.” The judge told jurors to keep trying. On Monday morning, jurors said they were at an impasse, but the judge asked them to continue deliberating. In the afternoon, they said it would be futile to continue.

“The deep division is not due to a lack of effort or diligence but rather a sincere adherence to our individual principles or moral convictions," the jury said in a note read by the judge in court.

O’Keefe’s mother cried after the mistrial was declared, while Read hugged her father and other relatives.

The verdict is a win for the defense, which hammered prosecution witnesses over shoddy police work and conflicts of interest involving investigators and witnesses. Police acknowledged using red plastic cups to collect blood evidence and a leaf blower to try to clear away snow to reveal evidence. The lead investigator acknowledged making crude statements about Read in texts from his personal cellphone.

A turning point in the case came when State Trooper Michael Proctor, the lead investigator on the case, took the stand. He acknowledged sending offensive texts about Read to friends, family and fellow troopers during the investigation. He apologized for the language he used but insisted they had no influence on the investigation.

In his texts, he called Read several names, including “whack job.” At one point, he texted his sister that he wished Read would “kill herself,” which he told jurors was a figure of speech. And despite having relationships with several witnesses, he remained on the case.

On Monday, Massachusetts State Police relieved Proctor of duty, saying the move followed the agency's previous decision to open an internal affairs investigation after getting information about potential serious misconduct. As part of the disciplinary process, Proctor will face a hearing at which officials will decide how to proceed with his employment.

Two expert witnesses hired by the U.S. Department of Justice during an investigation of police handling of the case testified for the defense, providing a scientific analysis for their conclusion that O’Keefe’s injuries and the physical evidence didn’t sync with the prosecution theory that he was struck and injured by Read’s 7,000-pound (3,175-kilogram) vehicle.

O’Keefe had a significant head injury and other injuries but lacked significant bruising or broken bones typically associated with being hit by a vehicle at the speed indicated by GPS and the SUV’s onboard computer.

While the drama played out in a courtroom, dozens of Read’s supporters dressed in pink gathered each day outside, carrying “Free Karen Read” signs and mobbing her when she arrived each day. A smaller group of people who wanted Read convicted also turned up.

Read supporters cheered after word got out of the mistrial, but they acknowledged that the outcome wasn't all they hoped for — and that she could be back in court again.

“It’s not the verdict we were hoping for, we were hoping for a not guilty verdict. That is what this jury should have returned with the evidence that was presented,” Rita Lombardi, a Canton resident who has described herself as being part of the “sidewalk jury.” “But we accept the hung jury, we accept the mistrial.”

Aidan Timothy Kearney, known online as Turtleboy and whose website and social media posts have attacked the prosecution's case for months, called the ruling “bittersweet.”

"It's not the outcome that we wanted. I wanted full vindication," he said. "But in my mind, the fact that so many people in that jury clearly are aware, the majority clearly is with Karen Read. It’s a small minority that is just stubborn and won’t look at the facts and won’t be impartial and it’s just judging her based on not liking her.”

Prosecutors relied on several first responders who testified that Read admitted that she hit O’Keefe — saying “I hit him” — as well as evidence that Read was legally intoxicated or close to it eight hours later, after she returned to the house with friends and they found the body.

Several witnesses testified the couple had a stormy relationship that had begun to sour. Prosecutors presented angry texts between the couple hours before O’Keefe died. They also played voice messages from Read to O’Keefe that were left after she allegedly struck him, including one left minutes afterward saying, “John I (expletive) hate you.”

This story has been corrected to show that the Norfolk district attorney's surname is spelled Morrissey, not Morrisey.

FILE - An empty flagpole is seen outside the residence where the body of John O'Keefe, a Boston police officer, was found on Jan. 29, 2022, outside the home, Thursday, June 27, 2024, in Canton, Mass. A judge declared a mistrial Monday, July 1, 2024, after jurors deadlocked in the case of Karen Read, who was accused of killing her boyfriend, O'Keefe, by striking him with her SUV and leaving him in a snowstorm. Prosecutors said in a statement that they intend to retry the case. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

FILE - Flags fly outside the Canton, Mass. Police Headquarters building, Thursday, June 27, 2024, in Canton. A judge declared a mistrial Monday, July 1, 2024, after jurors deadlocked in the case of Karen Read, who was accused of killing her Boston police officer boyfriend, John O'Keefe, by striking him with her SUV and leaving him in a snowstorm. Prosecutors said in a statement that they intend to retry the case. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

FILE - Flags fly outside the Waterfall Bar & Grille, Thursday, June 27, 2024, in Canton, Mass. Video evidence presented in the trial of Karen Read, showed the Waterfall as the last place where Read and her boyfriend John O'Keefe were seen together in public. A judge declared a mistrial Monday, July 1, 2024, after jurors deadlocked in the case of Read, who was accused of killing her police officer boyfriend, O'Keefe, by striking him with her SUV and leaving him in a snowstorm. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

FILE - Flags, flowers and remembrances flank the headstone of John O'Keefe, a Boston police officer, at Blue Hill Cemetery, Thursday, June 27, 2024, in Braintree, Mass. A judge declared a mistrial Monday, July 1, 2024, after jurors deadlocked in the case of Karen Read, who was accused of killing her police officer boyfriend, O'Keefe, by striking him with her SUV and leaving him in a snowstorm. Prosecutors said in a statement that they intend to retry the case. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

FILE - This photo undated photo released by the Boston Police Department shows officer John O'Keefe. A judge declared a mistrial Monday, July 1, 2024, after jurors deadlocked in the case of Karen Read, who was accused of killing O'Keefe, her boyfriend by striking him with her SUV and leaving him in a snowstorm. Prosecutors said in a statement that they intend to retry the case. (Boston Police Department via AP, File)

Supporters of Karen Read celebrate near Norfolk Superior Court, Monday, July 1, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. A judge declared a mistrial Monday after jurors deadlocked in the case of Read, who was accused of killing her Boston police officer boyfriend by striking him with her SUV and leaving him in a snowstorm. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Karen Read, right, smiles as defense attorney David Yannetti, left, speaks to reporters in front of Norfolk Superior Court, Monday, July 1, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. A judge declared a mistrial Monday after jurors deadlocked in the case of Read, who was accused of killing her Boston police officer boyfriend by striking him with her SUV and leaving him in a snowstorm. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Karen Read, right, smiles as defense attorney David Yannetti, left, speaks to reporters in front of Norfolk Superior Court, Monday, July 1, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. A judge declared a mistrial Monday after jurors deadlocked in the case of Read, who was accused of killing her Boston police officer boyfriend by striking him with her SUV and leaving him in a snowstorm. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Karen Read, right, smiles as defense attorney David Yannetti, front left, speaks to reporters in front of Norfolk Superior Court after the judge declared a mistrial after jurors were unable to reach a verdict following a two-month trial, Monday, July 1, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Before the jury enters, Judge Beverly J. Cannone, right, speaks to the defense and prosecution during the Karen Read trial at the Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Monday, July 1, 2024. This is their fifth day of deliberations in the murder trial for Read. Read is accused of backing her SUV into her Boston Police officer boyfriend, John O'Keefe, and leaving him to die in a blizzard in Canton, in 2022. (Pat GreenhouseThe Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

Karen Read, center, arrives at Norfolk Superior Court, Monday, July 1, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is on trial, accused of killing her boyfriend Boston police Officer John O'Keefe, in 2022. The jury began deliberations in the trial Tuesday, June 25. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Karen Read, center, arrives at Norfolk Superior Court, Monday, July 1, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is on trial, accused of killing her boyfriend Boston police Officer John O'Keefe, in 2022. The jury began deliberations in the trial Tuesday, June 25. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Judge Beverly J. Cannone speaks in Norfolk Superior Court, on their fifth day of deliberations in the murder trial for Karen Read in Dedham, Mass., Monday, July 1, 2024. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

Judge Beverly J. Cannone greets jurors in Norfolk Superior Court, on their fifth day of deliberations in the murder trial for Karen Read in Dedham, Mass., Monday, July 1, 2024. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

Paul O'Keefe, center, brother of the late Boston police Officer John O'Keefe, enters Norfolk Superior Court with his wife Erin O'Keefe, front left, Monday, July 1, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is on trial, accused of killing her boyfriend John O'Keefe, in 2022. The jury began deliberations in the trial Tuesday, June 25. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Jean Allan, of Weymouth, Mass., front, a supporter of Karen Read, displays a sign to passing cars near Norfolk Superior Court, Monday, July 1, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is on trial, accused of killing her boyfriend Boston police Officer John O'Keefe, in 2022. The jury began deliberations in the trial Tuesday, June 25. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

All stand as the jury files out to the courtroom, to start their fifth day of deliberations in the murder trial for Karen Read in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Monday, July 1, 2024. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

Flags, flowers and remembrances flank the headstone of John O'Keefe, a Boston police officer, at Blue Hill Cemetery, Thursday, June 27, 2024, in Braintree, Mass. A jury is deliberating the fate of O'Keefe's girlfriend, Karen Read, who is charged with second-degree murder in O'Keefe's death. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Karen Read talks with her legal team at the Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Monday, July 1, 2024. This is their fifth day of deliberations in the murder trial for Read. Read is accused of backing her SUV into her Boston Police officer boyfriend, John O'Keefe, and leaving him to die in a blizzard in Canton, in 2022. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

An empty flagpole is seen outside the residence where the body of John O'Keefe, a Boston police officer, was found on Jan. 29, 2022, outside the home, Thursday, June 27, 2024, in Canton, Mass. The fate of Karen Read, who is charged with second-degree murder in the death is in the hands of a jury currently deliberating her case. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

This photo undated photo released by the Boston Police Department shows officer John O'Keefe. (Boston Police Department via AP)

Karen Read, center, arrives at Norfolk Superior Court, Monday, July 1, 2024, in Dedham, Mass. Read is on trial, accused of killing her boyfriend Boston police Officer John O'Keefe, in 2022. The jury began deliberations in the trial Tuesday, June 25. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

OROVILLE, Calif. (AP) — Firefighters lined roads to keep flames from reaching homes as helicopters dropped water on a growing wildfire Wednesday in Northern California that has forced at least 13,000 people to evacuate, with another day of extreme heat expected.

The Thompson fire broke out before noon Tuesday about 70 miles (110 kilometers) north of Sacramento, in and around the city of Oroville, in Butte County. It sent up a huge plume of smoke and grew to nearly 4.7 square miles (12.1 square kilometers) by Wednesday morning. It was zero percent contained.

A state of emergency was declared Tuesday night by the city of about 20,000 people along the Feather River at the foot of the Sierra Nevada. Evacuation centers were set up at a church and the county fairgrounds.

There was no immediate official report on property losses. An Associated Press photographer saw fire burn three adjacent suburban-style homes in Oroville.

The fire ignited sprigs of grass poking from the concrete edges of Lake Oroville as gusty winds whipped up American flags lining a bend of the state’s second largest reservoir and the nation’s tallest dam.

Residents stood on hillsides in the night, watching the orange glow, as aircraft made water drops to keep the fire from spreading. A crew of more than a dozen firefighters saved one home as goats and other farm animals ran to find safety.

The fire's cause is being investigated. Red flag warnings for critical fire weather conditions, including gusty northerly winds and low humidity levels, were in effect when it erupted.

The warnings were expected to remain in effect until 8 p.m. Wednesday, said Garret Sjolund, the Butte County unit chief for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

“The conditions out there that are in our county this summer are much different than we’ve experienced the last two summers,” Sjolund said in an online briefing. “The fuels are very dense, brush is dry. And as you can see, any wind will, move a fire out very quickly.”

More high temperatures above 100 degrees (37.8 Celsius) were forecast Wednesday, the National Weather Service said. Hot conditions were expected to continue into next week.

Authorities warned of full legal consequences for any illegal use of fireworks during the Fourth of July holiday.

“Don’t be an idiot, cause a fire and create more problems for us,” said Butte County Sheriff Kory L. Honea. ”No one in the community is going to want that. And we certainly don’t want this."

The governor’s office announced late Tuesday that federal funding had been approved to help with firefighting efforts. Gov. Gavin Newsom this week activated the State Operations Center to coordinate California’s response, dispatch mutual aid and support communities as they respond to threats of wildfire and excessive heat.

More than a dozen other fires, most of them small, were active in California, according to Cal Fire. The largest, the Basin Fire, covered nearly 22 square miles (57 square kilometers) of the Sierra National Forest in eastern Fresno County and was 26% contained.

Antczak reported from Los Angeles.

Firefighters battle the Thompson Fire burning in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. An extended heatwave blanketing Northern California has resulted in red flag fire warnings and power shutoffs. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A firefighter runs while battling the Thompson Fire burning in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. An extended heatwave blanketing Northern California has resulted in red flag fire warnings and power shutoffs. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A home is seen engulfed in flames during the Thompson Fire in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Flames are seen on a ridge at the Potters Ravine Recreation Area near Lake Oroville during the Thompson Fire in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Rocco Olhiser, a firefighter with the Colusa Fire Department, carries a hose while battling the Thompson fire in Oroville, Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Rocco Olhiser, a firefighter with the Colusa Fire Department, center, douses water on a burning tree while battling the Thompson fire in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

A night flying helicopter drops water on flames as the Thompson Fire burns, Tuesday, July 2, 2024, in Oroville, Calif. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

A helicopter flies over the Thompson Fire as it burns above Lake Oroville in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Flames consume a garage as the Thompson Fire burns in Oroville, Calif., Tuesday, July 2, 2024. An extended heatwave blanketing Northern California has resulted in red flag fire warnings and power shutoffs. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)