DEDHAM – There is no testimony scheduled in the rest of the week Murder trial of Karen Readwhich has been going on for more than a month, with dozens more witnesses expected in the coming weeks.
According to prosecutors Read struck and killed her boyfriend John O’Keefe, a Boston police officer, with her SUV outside a Canton home in 2022 and left him to die in the snow.
Read’s attorneys claim she was framed and the victim of a cover-up by several people, including law enforcement. Defense attorneys claim that O’Keefe was actually killed during a fight in the house and then dragged outside.
The 45-year-old Mansfield man is charged with manslaughter, manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol and leaving the scene of personal injury and death. She has pleaded not guilty in the case.
What is the Karen Read trial schedule?
After a full day of testimony Tuesday, there will be no more court proceedings for the rest of this week. As court ended that day, Judge Beverly Cannone laid out the upcoming schedule.
Next week there will be no hearing on Tuesday June 4 and Friday June 7.
Full days of testimony are scheduled for Monday, June 3 and Wednesday, June 5. There is a half day on Thursday, June 6.
WBZ-TV’s Kristina Rex reached out to a representative at Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, where the trial is being held, to ask why there are so many days without testimony but has not heard back.
Cannone said she may shorten the judges’ lunch break from an hour to 45 minutes in the future. She also said testimony could be extended an extra half hour until 4:30 p.m. in an effort to speed up the process.
How many witnesses are left in the Karen Read trial?
At a hearing earlier this year, Norfolk County Assistant District Attorney Adam Lally estimated it would take the Commonwealth about four weeks to present its case. Opening statements took place April 29and that day the first witness was called.
There is already been 18 days of testimony from witnesses called by the prosecution over the course of more than four weeks.
At the start of the trial, the prosecution had a list of 87 witnesses who could be called. So far, more than 50 of these witnesses have taken the stand.
The defense has a list of 77 possible witnesses, 20 of which have already been called for prosecution.
