The Karen Read case has had no shortage of twists and turns throughout its controversial history so far. In one major incident, a blogger known as “Turtleboy” helped to stir up support for Karen Read and was charged with witness intimidation. In another surprise twist, the defense revealed that the case was subject to a federal investigation into conflicts of interest involving police investigators, some of whom, the defense allege, conspired to frame Karen Read as a cover up for Brian Albert who the defense say was responsible for the death of Read’s boyfriend John O’ Keefe.

Read is accused of second-degree murder after O’ Keefe was found in the snow outside Albert’s house in Canton, MA. Prosecutors allege that Read backed over her boyfriend while under the influence and then left him to die in the snow.

In the case’s latest development, Karen Read’s defense team moved to dismiss, claiming that the indictment was based on misleading evidence. The defense accuses prosecutors of withholding exculpatory evidence and distortion of facts leading the grand jury to believe in a false narrative of the case in which certain key evidence was withheld. Citing Commonwealth v. O’Dell, the defense maintained that the commonwealth’s case was based on distorted evidence that didn’t include key facts and conflicts of interests.

Defense attorney Alan Jackson told Judge Beverly Cannone that the grand jury was not made aware of Sergeant Michael Lank’s history of using his position to shield the Albert family from legal consequences in a bar fight incident in which Lank intervened. Lank was the first person on the scene of O’ Keefe’s death. The defense also claimed that the extent of the conflict of interest with Trooper Michael Proctor was not revealed to the grand jury. In the latest hearing, the defense unveiled new evidence from the federal investigation including text messages sent 10 days before O’ Keefe’s death in which Michael Proctor had discussed having Julie Albert, Brian Albert’s sister-in-law, look after his child, and text messages 3 days after in which Julie Albert had discussed getting Michael Proctor a thank you gift.
According to Boston.com the Massachusetts State Police have begun an investigation into a potential violation of Department policy by Trooper Michael Proctor.

The defense also accused prosecutors of withholding Brian Albert’s sister- in-law Jennifer McCabe’s Google search for “ho[w] long to die in cold” which was allegedly made at 2:27 a.m., before Read and McCabe found O’ Keefe’s body outside Brian Albert’s house. In addition, the defense also shared new evidence in which an expert retained by federal officials had concluded that John O’ Keefe’s injuries were “inconsistent” with the damage to Karen Read’s car.

Karen Read’s defense have long maintained that the prosecution has failed to reveal key details and to fulfill their Brady obligations to disclose exculpatory evidence under the Brady rule. Karen Read’s trial was due to start on March 12th, but Judge Beverly Cannone tentatively rescheduled the start date to April 16th after the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts turned over 3,074 pages of information from the federal probe into the case.

This high profile Massachusetts Criminal case highlights the fact that a strong defense can uncover unknown circumstances or unknown events or relationships. If you have been accused of serious crimes such as murder or manslaughter, the attorneys at Dhar Law LLP can assist you to fight these charges. Please contact our experienced team of Boston criminal defense attorneys at 617-880-6155 to learn more.