A recent bid by the prosecution in the Karen Read murder case to obtain her parents' phone records has been thwarted by a court ruling. Judge Beverly Cannone has denied requests for the documents which the prosecutors hoped would bolster their case. According to NBC Boston, the ruling stated that the motion "is insufficient on it's face and fails to meet the requirements of Lampron and Mass.R.Crim P.(13)(a)(2)." This setback comes as prosecutors sought to delve into the calls made between Read and her parents on the night of the death of Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe.
Karen Read, 44, stands accused of fatally striking her boyfriend with her SUV and leaving him out in the cold on January 29, 2022. The initial trial ended in a mistrial with a hung jury in July. Looking to refocus their approach for the retrial which may be moved from January to April, prosecutors intended to present phone records as potential evidence. Specifically, they are eyeing conversations between Read and her parents that took place around the time of the alleged crime. As reported by NBC Boston, special prosecutor Hank Brennan argued, "The interference is strong evidence that Ms. Read knew she had done something terrible," summarizing the significance of the calls with her parents. The defense, however, rebuffed the request as a breach of privacy and a "fishing expedition", according to defense attorney Elizabeth Little in a statement obtained by WCVB.
The defense has maintained that prosecutors already have the necessary information from Read's own phone and that delving into her parents' records goes beyond reason. They have posited that prosecutors should have collected ample evidence from the previous disclosures. Entangled in this is the contention that Karen Read could be the victim of a larger coverup. Meanwhile, William Read, Karen's father, is a potential prosecution witness in the forthcoming retrial, having not testified in the previous trial, while statements from a TV interview are sought to challenge his previous claims, as noted in the NBC Boston piece.
Moving forward, Karen Read has maintained her not-guilt plea to charges including second-degree murder. According to WCVB, this trooper was suspended, and others have faced internal affairs investigations. The court has also permitted certain evidentiary procedures to be undertaken, signaling that the case is forging ahead despite this recent procedural hurdle.
