Karen Read trial nears its finale: What each side is banking on

With closing arguments scheduled for Friday morning, jurors will soon begin deliberating Karen Read’s fate after 31 days of testimony in her second trial over the death of Boston cop John O’Keefe, her former boyfriend.

Read, 45, is accused of clipping the 46-year-old outside a house party and leaving him to die on the ground during a blizzard on Jan. 29, 2022. Her defense denies that a collision ever happened, suggesting he was attacked by someone at the party and a dog instead.

Judge Beverly Cannone denied the defense’s second motion for a finding of not guilty Thursday – clearing the way for deliberations to begin.

The following includes core evidence presented by both the prosecution and the defense.

Karen Read talks with her attorneys Robert Alessi and David Yannetti during her trial at Norfolk Superior Court, Tuesday, May 6, 2025, in Dedham, Mass. (Matt Stone/The Boston Herald via AP, Pool)

Defense experts testified that the minor abrasions on O’Keefe’s right arm were not caused by contact with Read’s broken taillight, but rather by dog or animal bites. Dr. Daniel Wolfe and Dr. Andrew Rentschler disputed Welcher’s findings with testing of their own, using a crash dummy arm that they said could not reproduce the same damage to a Lexus taillight.

The blow to the back of his head – which fractured his skull – did not come from contact on the frozen lawn, but rather by contact with a ridged, grainy surface, according to Dr. Elizabeth Laposata, a forensic pathologist and clinical professor at Brown University.

Defense witness Dr. Elizabeth Laposata on the stand answers questions during the Karen Read retrial, Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Dedham, Mass. (Matt Stone/The Boston Herald via AP, Pool)

Laposata also disputed autopsy findings that indicated O’Keefe had hypothermia – testifying that his internal injuries came from resuscitation attempts and not damage from the cold.

“The defense case is science, science and then more science,” said Mark Bederow, a New York City attorney representing Read ally and Canton blogger Aidan Kearney. “No car accident, then no crime.”

Karen Read arrives at Norfolk County Superior Court, Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Dedham, Mass. Read is charged with killing her Boston police officer boyfriend by intentionally driving her SUV into him. (Hans Pennink for Fox News Digital)

What’s next?

Read faces 15 years to life in prison if convicted on the top charge. If convicted of drunken driving manslaughter, she would face 5 to 20.