We’re starting off quieter Wednesday morning. Just a few light showers passed through earlier. Now, we’re stuck in the clouds — again.
The sun will slowly chew away at the cloud cover this afternoon. I’m not seeing true clearing, …
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We’re starting off quieter Wednesday morning. Just a few light showers passed through earlier. Now, we’re stuck in the clouds — again.
The sun will slowly chew away at the cloud cover this afternoon. I’m not seeing true clearing, …
by
On the second day of the high-profile murder trial against Karen Read, her defense attorney raised questions about the investigation when a police officer took the stand.
Read is charged with second-degree murder in the 2022 death of her boyfriend, Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe. He was found in the snow outside fellow Boston Police Officer Brian Albert’s home in Canton, Massachusetts. Prosecutors say Read hit O’Keefe with her SUV, while Read says she has been framed in a wide-ranging coverup.
Steven Saraf, the first officer from the Canton Police Department to arrive on the scene after O’Keefe was found, was called by the prosecution Monday. Tuesday began with cross-examination from defense attorney Alan Jackson.
Read’s team has questioned why investigators did not go into the home or talk to the homeowners after O’Keefe was found. Saraf defended this Tuesday.
“Do you think that would have been appropriate protocol, when dealing with a body laying on a lawn, that is partially unclothed, to look inside the house of the lawn?” Jackson asked Saraf.
“No,” he replied.
“You didn’t think that would have been appropriate protocol?” the defense attorney asked.
“No,” Saraf said again.
“For you or anybody else?” Jackson continued.
“No,” the officer repeated.
Speaking with NBC10 Boston Tuesday evening, security analyst Todd McGhee, a retired Massachusetts State Police trooper, called the police investigation described in Saraf’s testimony into question.
“As a law enforcement investigator, the first thing you’re looking for are facts. Facts lead to evidence, evidence can be gleaned from eyewitness accounts, from the Ring doorbells, anything that can help you stitch this mystery back together again,” he said. “And the fact that the investigation wasn’t thorough provides a big wrinkle in the prosecution’s case.”
Watch the Karen Read trial live on nbcboston.com, NECN, NBC Boston streaming platforms (including Roku, Peacock and Samsung TV) and NBC10 Boston’s YouTube page. Every night of the trial at 7 p.m., come back for analysis and more.
He elaborated that it does not make sense for investigators not to pursue evidence from the house or accounts from those inside.
“It does not ring true, because if I can find one person to help me spell out the story, to help bring some clarification, anything — was there another vehicle close by? Was there another eyewitness, as a neighbor, that I might be able to go and speak to?” McGhee said.
The defense also showed Saraf a video, which he acknowledged showed a person walking from the area where O’Keefe was found toward the house.
“There was a person walking from the area where a body was found in the lawn of a house, walking into the house to make contact with other individuals, correct?” Jackson asked Saraf.
“It appeared that way, yes, sir,” he replied.
“Does that seem appropriate to you?” Jackson asked.
“No,” said Saraf.
Saraf also acknowledged a discrepancy between what was in his initial written report and his claim months later that Read said “This is my fault, I can’t believe this happened.”
“Nowhere in your official report did you say that,” Jackson said. “And nowhere in your interview with Trooper Proctor the next day did you say that.”
Saraf said this was correct.
“You think that was a pretty important omission on your part?” Jackson asked.
“It was an oversight,” the officer answered.
“An oversight that a woman who you made contact with, standing over the body of a fallen police officer, said to you, ‘This is my fault?’ You just missed that one?” Jackson asked.
“Yes, I missed it, yeah. I didn’t write it down,” Saraf said.
Lally asked Saraf if his testimony to the grand jury and at trial about what Read said is accurate by his memory, to which the officer replied, “Yes.”
Court adjourned just before 1 p.m. and court will not be in session on Wednesday. Thursday will be a half day.
The trial is expected to last six to eight weeks.
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Lindsay Demers holds a PhD. and a role as assistant professor of medicine at Boston University.
As the director of the Education Evaluation Core, she studies the effectiveness of education interventions in medical schools. Then she needed to stage her own workplace intervention.
She says things started to change in 2021 and 2022 when she disclosed an invisible disability and requested accommodations. Lindsay was diagnosed with autism in 2020. She found a way to successfully manage her workday after asking for and receiving accommodations.
But despite working at an esteemed university with its own research in this field, she felt unheard.
“It wasn’t until I started to become more vocal, about kind of equality and accessibility that I noticed, a few key people that I worked alongside really kind of having outdated views,” she said.
She says she tried to engage in constructive conversations. When that didn’t work, she went to superiors and the institution’s equal opportunity office.
She later filed a claim with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, or MCAD, a free resource for anyone who feels they have been discriminated against.
In her complaint, she named a comment that a supervisor made about disabled individuals, saying they were unreliable and could not be trusted to get the job done.
“I don’t think this person has malintent,” she said, “but just that they have a really internalized sense of the medical model of disability, which really looks at disability as, a problem that needs to be cured.”
Lindsay also alleged retaliation after disclosing her disability. Boston University’s Equal Opportunity Office later concluded there was insufficient evidence of discrimination because her employment and pay were not affected.
“When I arrive in Boston. So that was with the framework I where I’ve kind of like, okay, this is the place I really want to be trained,” said Jonas Attilus. He started his medical education at Boston Medical Center where his experience turned sour quickly. “There was that sense of you don’t understand things because you don’t speak English enough or you don’t understand things because your accent is too strong… I would say most of the things that were kind of like, part of my identity, they’re kind of like being used against me.”
Jonas, a Haitian immigrant, who deals with an anxiety and PTSD diagnosis, says he was put in positions where his anxiety would create physical reactions. He ultimately left the program, without filing any complaints.
“My observation is that in institutions where there are a lot of, PhDs and etc. in the titles and so on, that the discrimination is at least as rampant,” said attorney Robert Hernandez. He works with the Mental Health Legal Advisors Committee. He says people who request accommodations are protected under Massachusetts law.
But coming forward is not easy and many don’t.
Of those who requested workplace accommodations, only half actually got them.
The study also found the mental health of those respondents was poor, with high rates of suicidal ideation, especially when autism was viewed as a disorder.
“Generally, in our top three of complaints that are filed or at the MCAD are complaints of discrimination based on disability. And those have started to climb within the last, you know, past year, few years,” said Michael Memmolo, the new executive director of the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination.
MCAD reports mental health claims dropped during the pandemic, last year they rose to 203, from 133 the previous year. Lindsay’s claim has not been resolved yet. “I came forward because my concern really extends beyond my experience,” she said.
But when asked if this problem is exclusive to the university, she said “I think this is an everywhere problem.”
“And I think that I’m most discouraged because of the setting that I’m in, because I’m in a medical setting that sees a lot of vulnerable patients. I would think that there would be a little bit more understanding.”
Boston University could not offer specific comments to our story but did refer us to their equal opportunity office whose mission is to “uphold equal opportunity principles throughout the university community, fostering an environment where faculty, staff, and students can engage in work and study free from unlawful harassment, discrimination, or access barriers.”
Boston Medical Center tells us, “The mental health and wellbeing of our patients, employees, residents, fellows, attending physicians, and advanced practice providers are top priorities.”
MCAD will investigate a complaint and determine if there’s been discrimination, remedies include compensation for lost wages and mediation services.
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Over 30 Harvard University students have been put on notice that disciplinary action is imminent against pro-Palestinian protesters who have set up an encampment on Harvard Yard.
Harvard University sent an email asking students to appear before the…
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Towns across Massachusetts are working to come into compliance with the MBTA Communities Law, which requires municipalities to rezone for more housing near transit stops.
Areas like Wakefield and Marshfield have both faced pushback over zoning plans, others like Rockport have seen citizens file lawsuits to block proposed changes.
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell is spearheading enforcement of the law and touting what this change will do for the Commonwealth in the long term.
“This mandatory tool has the opportunity and possibility to not only create more inclusive communities, but create housing that’s more affordable,” Campbell said.
But some aren’t convinced. Marshfield residents voted down a rezoning plan last week and attorneys for those suing in Rockport say the law deserves to be challenged.
“The people who are most impacted are the abutters who plan to be impacted by this and are very afraid of what it’s going to look like,” said Mike Walsh.
Campbell puts little stock in those examples.
“The majority of communities are either in compliance or working to come into compliance by the end of this year,” she said.
Even so, she’s prepared to take whatever action is necessary to ensure a smooth and complete statewide rollout.
“My job as Attorney General, chief law enforcement officer of the Commonwealth is to make sure that our people follow the law,” said Attorney General Campbell.
Many of these communities still have months to come into compliance. The attorney general already sued the town of Milton for not meeting its deadline, a case that’s set to go before the Supreme Judicial Court this fall.
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An Andover, Massachusetts, man faced a judge today, pleading not guilty in the deadly hit-and-run of a 62-year-old Army veteran.
Martin Quinlan pleaded not guilty in the crash that killed 62-year-old Methuen resident Pamela O’Neil on Sunday. The 29…
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