A glamorous Massachusetts woman accused of killing her cop boyfriend was reprimanded by a judge as she continued her courtroom antics on the final day of her trial.
Karen Read, 44, who has drawn attention during her murder trial with her attention-grabbing behavior and a throng of fans, was scolded Wednesday as her trial concluded.
She was reportedly caught smiling while her attorney spoke with Norfolk County Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone.
“Excuse me,” Cannone quickly interrupted as she and attorney Alan Jackson were chatting. “Is this funny, Mrs. Read?”
Karen Read, 44, was scolded by a judge at the conclusion of her trial while appearing to smile at court attendees, prompting the judge to ask: “Is this funny, Mrs. Read?”
Read faces murder charges in the January 2022 death of her police officer boyfriend, John O’Keefe, who prosecutors say was run over by Read in his car after a drunken night.
Read could be seen shaking her head after being confronted by the judge, who responded bluntly: “Okay, we’re done.”
It came as Jackson was questioning the wording used on a verdict sheet to be given to the jury, which he said guided jurors in finding Read guilty, reports the New York Post.
After Read’s apparent antics in court, Cannone disapproved of Jackson’s objection, saying it was the same verdict sheet handed out in every court in Massachusetts for a murder case.
After the hearing, Cannone allegedly decided to slightly edit the verdict sheet to add an additional jury instruction.
The jury deliberated the verdict for about three hours Tuesday and continued Wednesday until the trial concluded.
Read faces life in prison for the murder of her boyfriend John O’Keefe, who was found dead outside a friend’s house in January 2022.
Norfolk County Superior Court Judge Beverly Cannone criticized Read’s courtroom antics Wednesday during a discussion with his attorney over the verdict handed down to jurors.
Read faces life in prison for the alleged murder of her boyfriend and has attracted attention with some of her behavior during the trial.
Prosecutors allege that Read hit O’Keefe with his car after an argument, while she maintains that partygoers and members of the Boston Police Department framed her.
Prosecutors allege that Read hit O’Keefe with his car following a drunken argument when she dropped him off at her house for an after-party, and they claim to have found pieces of his car’s taillight around her body.
Read’s defense has responded that she is the victim of an extensive conspiracy to frame her and claimed that the police officer may have been attacked by other officers and attendees at the party where he was found dead.
Throughout her trial, Read’s claims that she was framed have attracted a number of fans, who are often seen stationed outside the courthouse insisting on her innocence.
Many have chosen to wear light pink to show their support, prompting Judge Cannone to issue a ruling at the start of the trial banning such clothing and preventing supporters from coming within 200 feet of the courthouse.
Read’s behavior in court has sparked negative reactions from some, including his eating snacks in court and winking at cameras as he approached supporters.
Read has come under scrutiny for a perceived flippant attitude in court, including winking at the cameras and making speeches during the proceedings.
As her trial began, Read received an outpouring of support from true crime fans and locals who camped outside the courthouse with signs reading “Free Karen Read.”
The 44-year-old woman, a financial analyst and college professor, faces second-degree murder charges as prosecutors say she drove drunk on O’Keefe after a drunken argument.
He had spent the night drinking with O’Keefe and a group of friends at the Waterfall Bar and Grill in Canton, about 14 miles south of Boston, and the group was invited to his friend Brian Albert’s house for an afterparty.
Read, who prosecutors say drank several alcoholic drinks beforehand, decided to drop O’Keefe off at the afterparty before she went to her home, which she shared with her orphaned niece and nephew, to sleep around 1 a.m.
Court documents revealed that the couple had been arguing bitterly for weeks beforehand, and on the night O’Keefe died, Read left him a voicemail calling him a “fucking loser” and “John, I fuck.” **** I hate you.’
The couple had been dating for two years at the time of O’Keefe’s death. He had worked at the Boston Police Department for 16 years.
Read and O’Keefe had been drinking on the night of his death, before she took him to an after-party while she went home to sleep. He was found dead on the lawn of the after-party house hours later.
While the party was going on inside the home of Albert, who was a retired Boston police officer, Read said she woke up around 4 a.m. to find he wasn’t home and told O’Keefe’s niece that She was “distraught.”
Partygoers, including some law enforcement officers, claimed that O’Keefe never arrived at the party or entered the house.
Read then searched for O’Keefe with a friend, and prosecutors allege that during the search she speculated: ‘What if he’s dead?’ What if he hits a plow?…I don’t remember anything from last night, we drank so much I don’t remember anything.’
At 6 a.m., Read found O’Keefe lying in the snow outside Albert’s home, and a first responder at the scene allegedly claimed that Read repeatedly screamed, “I hit him, I hit him.” CBS News.
O’Keefe was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The autopsy determined that the cause of death was blunt force trauma and hypothermia.
