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DNA, accounts of strained relationship at center of case against Karen Read, documents show

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Prosecutors unveiled new evidence Thursday in the run-up to the trial of Karen Read, including long-awaited DNA evidence from the scene, as they argued why they feel the murder case over the killing of John O’Keefe in Canton, Massachusetts, should move forward.

The office also shared witness accounts that, they said, suggested her relationship with O’Keefe was strained at the time of his death.

Read is charged with second-degree murder in the killing of O’Keefe, a Boston police officer who was found dead outside a Canton home in January of 2022.

The case has drawn national attention. The state alleges Read hit O’Keefe with her vehicle and left him for dead in the snow, while Read alleges she is being framed in a large-scale coverup.

The office of Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey filed one set of documents Friday arguing against Read’s efforts to dismiss the case, as NBC10 Boston reported Wednesday.

In another memorandum filed Wednesday, prosecutors said O’Keefe’s DNA was recovered from the broken tail light of Read’s vehicle. They also shared details of the case brought before a grand jury two years ago, arguing against Read’s motion to toss the indictments against her.

Read and O’Keefe were out drinking Jan. 28, 2022, with a group of people including Boston Police Officer Brian Albert. Members of the group went back to Albert’s Fairview Road home, and Read says she dropped O’Keefe off there and went home. He was found the next morning and pronounced dead at a hospital.

Prosecutors allege Read hit O’Keefe with her SUV and left him to die. But Read’s attorneys have said evidence points to O’Keefe being attacked inside the home and brought outside, arguing, among other points, that the wounds on his body were not consistent with a crash.

The district attorney’s office now says a small hair found stuck on the rear passenger side of Read’s SUV has been identified as belonging to O’Keefe.

“Through trace analysis and forensic testing, the Massachusetts State Police Crime Laboratory discovered the victim’s DNA present on the broken taillight and microscopic pieces of red and clear apparent plastic located in the victim’s clothing,” prosecutors wrote. “Comparison testing was conducted, and the results demonstrate that the microscopic pieces of red and clear plastic are consistent with the broken pieces of plastic from the defendant’s rear taillight.”

The documents paint a picture of relationship turmoil between Read and O’Keefe. The officer’s niece and nephew, who were in his care for years following the deaths of their parents, described frequent arguments in interviews with police after their uncle’s death, according to prosecutors.

In voicemails recovered from O’Keefe’s phone, which the district attorney’s office says were left “in the time period surrounding” his death, Read allegedly screamed, “John, I f***ing hate you,” called him a pervert and accused him of cheating on her.

Multiple witnesses described a trip to Aruba a month before O’Keefe’s death as a pivotal moment in the couple’s relationship, prosecutors said. O’Keefe’s niece, who was 14 at the time, reportedly said Read had accused O’Keefe of kissing someone else, leading to a 20-minute argument in their hotel room.

A longtime friend of O’Keefe told police she had organized the Aruba trip, inviting about 70 people. That woman’s sister described an encounter with O’Keefe and Read, saying she hugged O’Keefe after bumping into him in the lobby.

“She heard the defendant yell, ‘John, who the f*** was that,’” the district attorney’s office wrote. Upon being told it was his friend’s sister, “the defendant then said, ‘I don’t give a f***,’ then yelled to [the woman] ‘f*** you.’”

A man who was present at Albert’s home the night before O’Keefe’s body was found said Read “surprised him with a kiss on the lips” about two weeks earlier, according to prosecutors.

That man showed texts between him and Read to state police, which prosecutors described as “romantic in nature.” In one of them, she allegedly told him not to worry about O’Keefe finding out about the kiss “as she knows where the cameras are on the victim’s house.”

Asked if she was happy in her relationship with O’Keefe, Read allegedly told the man O’Keefe had cheated on her during the Aruba trip.

NBC10 Boston has reached out to Read’s attorneys Thursday, but has not heard back.

The trial is set to begin March 12, despite a recent request from both prosecutors and Read’s defense to delay it. Both sides were waiting for DNA evidence, which Read’s attorneys have noted had taken years to be processed.

More on the Karen Read case



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Judge in Karen Read murder case keeps trial date amid wait for evidence



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Nov 21, 2023


Canton residents vote to audit police department over John O’Keefe murder case

Worcester man has been missing for over a week

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Worcester police are searching for a man who hasn’t been heard from for over a week.

Daniel Burrell, 37, was last seen at his family’s home on Reservoir Street on Feb 10. He is 6-foot-8 with a large build, and was last wearing black sweatpants and …