A mistrial was declared in the high-profile murder case against Karen Read Monday, a Massachusetts woman accused of killing her police officer boyfriend by hitting him with her SUV in January 2022.
Read's defense has argued from the beginning that she was innocent in the death of John O'Keefe, whose body was found outside a home in Canton, Massachusetts, during a snowstorm. On Monday the team spoke outside court and vowed to keep on fighting any further prosecution against Read, who they claimed was framed as part of a law enforcement conspiracy.
More on the Karen Read case
"This is what it looks like when you bring false charges against an innocent person," defense attorney Alan Jackson began. "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. This is what it looks like, and guess what, they failed. They failed miserably and they’ll continue to fail. No matter how long they keep trying we will not stop fighting. We have no quit."
Attorney David Yannetti took up the podium next, saying he just two things to say.
"Number one I am in awe of the strength and courage of this remarkable client that I’ve had the privilege of representing since day one and number two I want to send a message to all of our supporters out there. Your support was invaluable, we are touched, and we ask for your continued support," he said.
The Commonwealth has said it intends to retry the case.
