A trooper who handled key evidence and witnesses in the murder case against Karen Read is now the subject of an internal investigation by Massachusetts State Police.
State police confirmed Wednesday that Michael Proctor is being investigated for a potential violation of department policy but they would not comment on what caused them to probe one of their own.
Sources tell NBC10 Boston the investigation is in connection to the Read case.
Proctor remains on full duty while the internal investigation unfolds, and the Norfolk County District Attorney's Office told NBC10 Boston the internal affairs investigation had not impacted Proctor's case assignments.
Proctor was one of the investigators in the case against Read, who is charged with second-degree murder in the 2022 death of her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe, in Canton.
Prosecutors allege that Read hit O'Keefe with her SUV and left him to die, while Read's defense attorneys have long claimed she is being framed in a wide-ranging coverup.
The internal investigation came to light just one day after a bombshell hearing in Read's murder trial, in which her defense attorney alleged Proctor never fully disclosed his personal relationship with multiple people involved in the case. This includes the Albert family, who lived at the home on the property where O’Keefe’s body was found.
Texts allegedly show the Alberts offered to send Proctor a thank you gift “when this is all over,” and just days prior to O’Keefe’s death, Proctor had allegedly asked the Alberts to babysit his child.
“So now we have the lead investigator from Massachusetts State Police literally discussing the exchange of gifts between the Albert family on one hand, and the Proctor family on the other hand, as a thank you -- their words -- for helping the Alberts out of a jam," Alan Jackson, one of Read's defense attorneys, said in court Tuesday.
It's not yet clear what impact, if any, the internal affairs investigation could have on the case.
Shane Rodriguez, a professor at the Massachusetts School of Law, said a finding of wrongdoing "could have a huge implication for the district attorney and their ability to prosecute this case." Beyond that, he said, "it could have an impact on later cases separate from the Karen Read case."
The State Police Association of Massachusetts has declined to comment on the investigation into Proctor.
An attorney for Read declined to comment to NBC10 Boston Thursday.
Read's trial is set to begin April 16. The start was delayed on Feb. 26 after federal investigators released thousands of pages of new evidence.
