MA - Professor Karen Read, 43, charged with murdering police officer boyfriend John O'Keefe by hitting him with car, Canton, 14 Apr 2023 #5

[Bishop Black]

Professor Was Accused of Hitting Cop Boyfriend with Car, Leaving Him to Die. Does New Evidence Exonerate Her?

Karen Read has been charged with second-degree murder, motor vehicle manslaughter and leaving the scene of a collision in the death of her off-duty Boston Police Officer boyfriend John O'Keefe.

people.com

Karen Read has been charged with second-degree murder, motor vehicle manslaughter and leaving the scene of a collision in the January 2022 death of her off-duty Boston Police Officer boyfriend John O'Keefe outside a Canton, Mass., home.

She's pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Leading up to his death, the couple of two years reportedly spent the night drinking and bar hopping with friends before Read, 43, dropped O'Keefe, 46, off at the home of a fellow off-duty police officer for an after-party, PEOPLE previously reported.

Prosecutors say as O'Keefe exited the vehicle, Read allegedly proceeded to make a three-point turn during a winter storm, striking her boyfriend in the process before driving off.

After O'Keefe failed to return home hours later, Read allegedly went looking for him, before finding his body in a snowbank outside the home where she allegedly left him.

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[Knitty]

Please continue the discussion here.

 

[Dre]

BA and BH both got new phones the day before they were to receive the order to preserve their phones.

 

[Wishbone]

dbm

 

[keek]

I felt it was a throw away comment, purposely said though, that Higgins said he did see briefly, tall and dark haired. JO is light haired I believe and prob would of had his cap on, and he KNOWS who JO is, very well. He said I believe, that maybe it was the brother picking up the sister, but that guy didn't come in, the sister went OUT. He seemed to be making that person up. If anyone, it would be Colin? Was he attempting to put Colin in the house or around? That's a long drive to West Roxbury for him if exhausted as he said and had the alc in him, but he seems to have made it and my worry is anyone else out on the roads with him in that state of being, falling asleep for one. He was tipped off to trash that phone and I bet the SIM card is hidden somewhere really good. IT'S HIS LIFE CAREER these kind of things, also being a specialized medic when in the service. Kills me.

 

[Dre]

Anyone think that BH’s ATF digital forensics friend explained to him that destroying devices on a military base would hinder any timely search/seizure/records requests?

 

[ch_13]

I don't think this has been posted. CourtTV drives by the house and discusses what people would see from different viewpoints.

 

[keek]

I felt it was a throw away comment, purposely said though, that Higgins said he did see briefly, tall and dark haired. JO is light haired I believe and prob would of had his cap on, and he KNOWS who JO is, very well. He said I believe, that maybe it was the brother picking up the sister, but that guy didn't come in, the sister went OUT. He seemed to be making that person up. If anyone, it would be Colin? Was he attempting to put Colin in the house or around? That's a long drive to West Roxbury for him if exhausted as he said and had the alc in him, but he seems to have made it and my worry is anyone else out on the roads with him in that state of being, falling asleep for one. He was tipped off to trash that phone and I bet the SIM card is hidden somewhere really good. IT'S HIS LIFE CAREER these kind of things, also being a specialized medic when in the service. Kills me.

Not that he knows what Colin looks like he said, but, just someone else. He also said he didn't know if that person came in or not. Maybe someone did run up to the door, but not IN really, but that can be asked of those boys. Thing is unfortunately, when EMT's etc showed up to attend to JO , KR was there saying her thing and they were prob going on that, along with whatever first cop that was there. Treating him as hit by a car and left. Clothing not secured by officer. THEN of course, PROCTOR got in the MIX.

 

[nodamselindistress]

I don't think this has been posted. CourtTV drives by the house and discusses what people would see from different viewpoints.

Thanks for bringing this to the thread! I posted the other night about it when it was live, found it quite helpful.

 

[nodamselindistress]

I felt it was a throw away comment, purposely said though, that Higgins said he did see briefly, tall and dark haired. JO is light haired I believe and prob would of had his cap on, and he KNOWS who JO is, very well. He said I believe, that maybe it was the brother picking up the sister, but that guy didn't come in, the sister went OUT. He seemed to be making that person up. If anyone, it would be Colin? Was he attempting to put Colin in the house or around? That's a long drive to West Roxbury for him if exhausted as he said and had the alc in him, but he seems to have made it and my worry is anyone else out on the roads with him in that state of being, falling asleep for one. He was tipped off to trash that phone and I bet the SIM card is hidden somewhere really good. IT'S HIS LIFE CAREER these kind of things, also being a specialized medic when in the service. Kills me.

I think it was a warning shot to the McAlberts that he dd not intend to go down with them if worse came to worse. It has been said the Brians quit communicating with each other around that time and BA was afraid BH was going rogue.

 

[keek]

I think it was a warning shot to the McAlberts that he dd not intend to go down with them if worse came to worse. It has been said the Brians quit communicating with each other around that time and BA was afraid BH was going rogue.

Higgins is getting all kinds of input from prob family (his parents if able) other close people who know him and they would be saying.. Do the right thing, Albert throw you under the bus in a hahtbeat.

 

[keek]

Higgins is getting all kinds of input from prob family (his parents if able) other close people who know him and they would be saying.. Do the right thing, Albert throw you under the bus in a hahtbeat.

Oh and his lawyer, superiors, so on.

 

[HarmonyE.]

Anyone think that BH’s ATF digital forensics friend explained to him that destroying devices on a military base would hinder any timely search/seizure/records requests?

Can state police search a military base? Either way, did Higgins think they couldn't?

 

[pavlovsdaughter]

Question that is bugging me: if BH used the FBI “device” to extract data from his phone, where is that data? Why were we treated to mere screenshots if some sort of extraction happened?

 

[Seni]

Agree.⁸⁷

Maybe because that is how he extracted the data? I dont understand what he means by "wires".

 

[ch_13]

Question that is bugging me: if BH used the FBI “device” to extract data from his phone, where is that data? Why were we treated to mere screenshots if some sort of extraction happened?

Okay, I went and looked it up. This is a PDF from the FBI's forensic lab that describes the Cell Phone Investigative Kiosk: https://www.rcfl.gov/new-jersey/documents-forms/cellphone-investigative-kiosk.pdf

And here's the description of what the kiosk does:

The CPIK Enables users to

• Copy Data—From a cell phone to a computer hard drive
• Examine This Data—In a report format on the computer screen
• Copy the Report—Onto a portable device, e.g., CD or DVD
• Take and Review Pictures—Of the actual data on a cell phone screen
• Copy the Pictures—Onto a portable device, e.g., CD or DVD.

I wonder if Higgins just copied the screenshot pictures (the last bullet point) and never downloaded the report onto the CD/DVD.

 

[sunspun]

Okay, I went and looked it up. This is a PDF from the FBI's forensic lab that describes the Cell Phone Investigative Kiosk: https://www.rcfl.gov/new-jersey/documents-forms/cellphone-investigative-kiosk.pdf

And here's the description of what the kiosk does:

The CPIK Enables users to

• Copy Data—From a cell phone to a computer hard drive
• Examine This Data—In a report format on the computer screen
• Copy the Report—Onto a portable device, e.g., CD or DVD
• Take and Review Pictures—Of the actual data on a cell phone screen
• Copy the Pictures—Onto a portable device, e.g., CD or DVD.

I wonder if Higgins just copied the screenshot pictures (the last bullet point) and never downloaded the report onto the CD/DVD.

*the NEXT to last bullet point, right?

 

[nightowl1975]

Post in thread 'MA - Professor Karen Read, 43, charged with murdering police officer boyfriend John O'Keefe by hitting him with car, Canton, 14 Apr 2023 #4'
MA - Professor Karen Read, 43, charged with murdering police officer boyfriend John O'Keefe by hitting him with car, Canton, 14 Apr 2023 #4

I noticed a possible inconsistency in the defense's case, don't know if this has been discussed.

In his opening statement, Yannetti said the plow driver saw no body outside at 2:30 am, but when questioning McCabe, Jackson said, “Ms. McCabe, you made that search at 2:27 a.m. because you knew John O’Keefe was outside on your sister’s lawn dying in the cold, didn’t you?”

What's up with that?

IMO only, I wonder if she googled how long it would take for someone to die in the cold before they dumped him out there to die? If it was just being discussed as a possible way to deal with the “problem”, but it would make sense they wanted to know how long it would take for someone to freeze to death. If it would take too long, they would need a different plan. If that’s what happened, the timeline makes sense. Googling just before 2:30am, snow plow comes through at 2:30, body dumped outside at some point after.

 

[nightowl1975]

For those who believe KR killed him (on purpose or by accident), I’ve not seen any reasonable theory or explanation for the 2:27am google search. Do people truly believe the FBI experts somehow got it wrong, along with all of the others who investigated that particular issue? Why would JM be googling that in the middle of the night, hours prior to his body being found? Is there a reasonable explanation?

 

[Charlot123]

@ch_13, the previous thread was finished and I wanted to comment on Higgins's cross. For me, it was the most amusing part of the trial, so far. So I hope I "re-copied" right. I needed the text to look before I'd answer.

I never said that Higgins is part of a conspiracy. Simply that his behavior is sketchy.

He is a sketchy person, period. Not anyone i'd ever trust to be a friend, and i am surprised that KR didn't see it.

Maybe he's protecting his friends, maybe he's hiding something unrelated by getting rid of his phone. And it's possible that by destroying the evidence, he did "save his skin" because he knew there was something on it that the Feds would be able to use against him.

Who knows? Could be purely professional, too.

We know Higgins is currently on desk duty. In all likelihood he will have to resign and even if he's able to hang on to his job, it's a virtual certainty he will never be promoted or trusted with line duty again. His career with ATF is for all intents and purposes over.

I think his career is over for the reason unrelated to what he personally did, or didn't do. Simply, he had the misfortune of getting stuck in the messiest, loudest situation in the CW. Surely it is over. He is probably seething inside. But, he holds emotions well. It deserves some respect.

Did you notice how carefully he answered questions on the stand? He never admitted or denied that he destroyed the the SIM, instead answering it as "if I did it" (shades of OJ). He said that two or three times. Clearly he was coached to answer that way by his attorney to avoid a charge of perjury. And he only remembers passing through the sally port yet the defense has an eyewitness that puts him and Chief Berkowitz with Karen's SUV for an extended period of time.

Here is an interesting situation. The difficulty of a lawyer like AJ, involved in loud dramatic processes, but with very different plaintiffs, to cross an ex-military man with a good sense of humor...

Yes, BH was coached by his attorney. But if I were to guess, AJ doesn't have a military background. So the whole dialogue was like, "so, you said that at three o'clock pm you went to that watering hole?" "No, I said I was at the watering hole at fifteen o'clock". "That's what I say...", "no, this is not what I said", and KR looking imploringly at AJ, "why don't you go for the jugular?" Not so easy...

(Has anyone tried crossing the state borders? The best way to answer is, "yes, sir. Three days, sir. Pleasure, sir!" I can't do it, so even truthful "I am going to Canada for shopping" turns into a lengthy interrogation.)

But Higgins didn't offer AJ this possibility. Plus, he is smart. "They served beer so I realized it was going to be a short evening for me". Personally, I have a lot of questions about what they really served at BA's house, but, by joking, BH simultaneously made things easy for BA (it is beer, after all, not whiskey) and put himself out of the ring of fire ("they served beer, so it wasn't a long party for me"). AJ is good because of high level of aggression, but here, it was like playing tennis with a tennis wall. You get all your serves back.

And AJ seemed to acknowledge it by mentioning that BH had a military background.

All I got from this cross was that for smart, organized men with military background, you have to hire military attorneys. Dramatic antics don't work here. Just an interesting observation. I don't think we'll get any justice for JO, but this trial is surprisingly dull. Higgins was interesting.

Why do you think he was at Canton PD for the whole day when he had the day off? And I'm not even going to get into the ridiculousness of the 2:30 AM "butt dials". Whatever his motivation, much of what he said on the stand under cross-examination was just not credible, IMO.

I don't know, tbh. But he can also say, "business unrelated to this situation".

"Butt dials" are turning into a meme. "Our new Samsungs have AI function, and the very new butt dials function, too, with self-disconnect". A class above "better camera", lol.