Karen Read trial live: Witness who heard Read say ‘I hit him’ grilled during cross examination
Ms Read is accused of running over her police officer boyfriend and then fleeing the scene in 2022
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The trial of a woman accused of murdering her police officer boyfriend in Massachusetts continued on Tuesday as a witness who claimed she heard the defendant say “I hit him” multiple times sat for a cross examination.
Karen Read, a financial analyst and former Bentley University professor, is on trial charged with the second-degree murder and manslaughter of Boston police officer John O’Keefe.
Prosecutors allege that Ms Read ran over O’Keefe in her car while drunk, leaving him for dead in the snow outside a fellow police officer’s home in the early hours of 29 January, 2022.
Ms Read’s defense claims that she is being framed by police as part of a sprawling cover-up involving prominent law enforcement family, the Alberts.
Jennifer McCabe was with Ms Read when they discovered O’Keefe’s body lying in the snow in front of the home of Brian and Nichole Albert, where a group went after a night out at a local bar.
McCabe, who Google searched “hos (sic) long to die in cold” the morning that O’Keefe’s body was found in the snow, was questioned by the defense about her statements and actions after his death.
Did a professor run over her police officer boyfriend and leave him to die in the snow – or is she being framed?
Karen Read loses it on defense team as trial over the alleged murder of her cop boyfriend drags on
Surveillance footage shows Boston cop and girlfriend Karen Read in bar hours before she allegedly murdered him
What have other witnesses said?
On Wednesday, the court heard from Allison McCabe, the daughter of Jennifer McCabe, who was with Ms Read when they discovered Mr O’Keefe’s body lying in the snow in front of the home of Brian and Nichole Albert, where a group went after the bar they had all been at closed.
During Allison’s emotional testimony, she came to the defence of Colin Albert, one of the men Ms Read’s defence team claims was involved in a fight at Albert’s home that they say resulted in Mr O’Keefe’s death, according to CBS.
Allison told the court she had picked up Colin Albert and drove him to the home, and that Colin was not present during the alleged fight.
“Colin wasn’t at the house. He’s being harassed for … he was not at the house when John [O’Keefe] was there. I drove him home. People are harassing him, saying he was at the house when it’s not true,” Allison McCabe said in court.
Day 13 of Karen Read trial
Court has been underway once more in the murder trial of Karen Read, as her defence attorney cross-examines key witness Colin Albert.
Mr Albert was allegedly inside the home in Canton, Massachusetts, where John O’Keefe was found lying in the snow outside on 29 January 2022.
Ms Read’s team argues that Mr Albert was involved in a fight which ultimately led to Mr O’Keefe’s death.
Defense paints Colin Albert as violent
Karen Read’s attorney has tried to paint Colin Albert as a violent individual, by showing videos from his phone and social media that included him saying he would “f**k you up” to unknown individuals he was potentially upset with.
Mr Albert claimed these were from sometime during high school, meaning they were made a few years before the night John O’Keefe died.
Ms Read’s defence team believes Mr Albert did have the means and the motive to attack the victim and will be hoping these videos show that he has violent tendencies.
Read has strong reactions during Wednesday’s court proceedings
Yesterday, Ms Read snapped at her defense attorneys during a break and the entire exchange was captured by cameras in the courtroom.
The incident happened after testimony and Read rolled her eyes and then looked sharply at her lawyers.
Defence argues police did not investigate Alberts
The defence presented a photo of Colin Albert with grazed knuckles from February 2022, which he claimed happened when he fell over while with friends.
Defence attorney Alan Jackson said this wasn’t true, instead saying the injury showed the witness had been in a fight around the time the photo was taken, not long after Mr O’Keefe died.
Mr Jackson said police did not do enough to investigate those inside the Alberts’ home on 29 January 2022 and that Colin Albert’s injury backed his assertion that the witness has violent tendencies.
Colin Albert says he had ‘never’ threatened John O’Keefe
Prosecutors asked Colin Albert if he had ever had any issues with the victim, including whether they had argued about women.
The witness replied to each question with “never”.
He was then asked about people writing about him online, which he said began around a year ago.
“People on Twitter, Instagram, social media were just coming at my family, calling us murderers, harassing us, turning up to our doorsteps, our sports games,” he said. “We couldn’t leave the house without people taking pictures of us.”
Prosecutors call next witness Matthew McCabe
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has called the next witness to the stand: Matthew McCabe.
Mr McCabe is the husband of Jennifer McCabe and both were at the Alberts’ home on Fairview Road where John O’Keefe was found on 29 January 2022, according to NBC 10 Boston.
He was friends with Mr O’Keefe and Ms Read by extension.
McCabe was at a local bar the night John O’Keefe died
Matthew McCabe explained how he and a group of friends were at the bar until around midnight the night of the alleged murder.
He explained that the group at The Waterfall included his wife Jennifer, along with members of the Albert family: Nicole, Chris and Julie Albert, as well as a few other friends.
At some point later on in the evening, he said Mr O’Keefe and Karen Read showed up, along with other members of the Albert family.
WATCH: Prosecutors believe Karen Read killed John O’Keefe
During opening statements two weeks ago, prosecutors laid out the evidence they say proves Ms Read ran her boyfriend over and left him for dead.
Karen Read argues she was framed
Ms Read’s attorneys argue she has been framed in a large cover-up, claiming a law enforcement official who investigated the case has personal ties to the family of retired detective Brian Albert, outside whose home O’Keefe was found. Her attorneys also claim O’Keefe’s injuries were consistent with a severe beating, rather than with being struck by a car.
An autopsy found that O’Keefe had several abrasions on his right forearm, two black eyes, a cut on his nose, a two-inch laceration to the back of his head and multiple skull fractures. Authorities also say hypothermia was a contributing factor in his death.
Read more here:
Karen Read: Professor goes to court as prosecutors say she ran over cop boyfriend
Karen Read’s murder charges have generated a media frenzy for months, with competing claims of a cold-blooded killing and conspiracy theories about a cover-up. Katie Hawkinson reports