MISTRIAL MA - Professor Karen Read, 43, charged with murdering police officer boyfriend John O'Keefe by hitting him with car, Canton, 14 Apr 2023 #16

[Forest_Wood]

I had at some point considered this possibility, specifically that Chloe could have attacked John in the yard when she was briefly let out, causing him to fall backwards at strike his head on the fire hydrant.
However, looking at google maps street view, and comparing it to the dashcam video from the Police cruiser arriving at 34 Fairview Rd (Timestamp approx 6:14:55 in this video) I can estimate that JOK's body (marked with red X in picture) lay approximately 23 feet from the fire hydrant.
I also considered that he could have struck his head on the flag pole in the same manor.

However, we also know that his body temperature was approximately 80*f as measured at the hospital more than six hours after he arrived at the house. And I don't believe it's possible for him to be that warm after lying in the snow in a blizzard for six hours wearing only jeans and a light hoodie. He would have been basically frozen by 6am.
So my thinking is that he either died outside after 3am, or more likely that he died inside and remained in the building for some hours before being moved out to the lawn.

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I don't understand why it's been said he was 30' from the curb when this picture looks about 6'.

 

[kittythehare]

IANAL and I watch trials all the time. I like to learn why an objection is made and then understand why it was sustained/overruled. I realize it's nothing "strange going on." It's the way she does things in her courtroom, but I dislike it.

With you on this.
Most judges will set out the parameters and cite why an objection is sustained... or at least indicate..

This made no sense at all.
Lally often objected 3 times in one sentence..

 

[TIGER0822]

Turtleboy has provided some info. re: the jury (not breakdown), but occupation of three jurors and their votes. Is this allowed to be posted?

 

[OldCop]

With you on this.
Most judges will set out the parameters and cite why an objection is sustained... or at least indicate..

This made no sense at all.
Lally often objected 3 times in one sentence..

I’m not sure Lally is able to jump to his feet and quickly elucidate the reason for his objection. It was like he knew to object but couldn’t come out with the proper verbiage. I think the judge knows this is and was trying to help him along.

 

[Spectrix]

I don't understand why it's been said he was 30' from the curb when this picture looks about 6'.

The 30 foot measure was the estimated distance that Trooper Paul suggested the body flew through the air, on a diagonal path, between the point of impact on the road and the final resting place.

One of the problems with his calculation was that it required JOK to originally be standing on the road somewhere near the fire hydrant. Heaven knows why he'd be standing there.

The other problem is that Trooper Paul's 'physics' appear to operate in an entirely different dimension than ours do.

 

[Forest_Wood]

I’m not sure Lally is able to jump to his feet and quickly elucidate the reason for his objection. It was like he knew to object but couldn’t come out with the proper verbiage. I think the judge knows this is and was trying to help him along.

I found Lally to be quite astute in his examinations of witnesses, although not as forceful as the defense. He wasn't as polished but he seemed thorough. I also noticed many of the objections were over the way in which the questions were asked without first being qualified. There was a lot of putting the cart before the horse. For ex: Asking a question about a topic before asking the witness if they were aware of that topic. After an objection was sustained, the defense then had to backtrack and ask the proper question first, before asking the next question, to get the answer.
MOO.

 

[OldCop]

I found Lally to be quite astute in his examinations of witnesses, although not as forceful as the defense. He wasn't as polished but he seemed thorough. I also noticed many of the objections were over the way in which the questions were asked without first being qualified. There was a lot of putting the cart before the horse. For ex: Asking a question about a topic before asking the witness if they were aware of that topic. After an objection was sustained, the defense then had to backtrack and ask the proper question first, before asking the next question, to get the answer.
MOO.

I respect your opinion but, I didn’t see Lally the same way you did. That’s okay because that’s one reason we got a hung jury.
To me, Lally mumbled a lot and was constantly told by the judge to speak up. He shuffled around the room rifling through his yellow legal pad. He talked about the weather and other mundane tidbits for almost four weeks before he ever got to the victim and his cause and manner of death. He did make some points but, I never felt his heart was in this prosecution. I think he knew it was a bad case, but was under pressure to prosecute.
Was the defense team slick? Yes they were but, if the evidence, (if that’s what you want to call it), wasn’t so lacking and provably wrong, they couldn’t make such a mess of the prosecution witnesses.
A strong prosecutor with a strong case would not have had this outcome.
I think the judge wanted a G verdict and the spotlight off the town, its agencies, and her office. She did a poor job of looking unbiased in this case. The cast of characters involved here made them look like a large incestuos family who were also the town bullies. They leave a yucky taste in your mouth.

 

[turaj]

Why not?

cost...the best hope will be somewhere that most can commute. I believe it is same judge.Many other county but not state.

 

[TIGER0822]

I’m not sure Lally is able to jump to his feet and quickly elucidate the reason for his objection. It was like he knew to object but couldn’t come out with the proper verbiage. I think the judge knows this is and was trying to help him along.

And not letting the dog bite witness give her final opinion /concludion.

 

[Forest_Wood]

I respect your opinion but, I didn’t see Lally the same way you did. That’s okay because that’s one reason we got a hung jury.
To me, Lally mumbled a lot and was constantly told by the judge to speak up. He shuffled around the room rifling through his yellow legal pad. He talked about the weather and other mundane tidbits for almost four weeks before he ever got to the victim and his cause and manner of death. He did make some points but, I never felt his heart was in this prosecution. I think he knew it was a bad case, but was under pressure to prosecute.
Was the defense team slick? Yes they were but, if the evidence, (if that’s what you want to call it), wasn’t so lacking and provably wrong, they couldn’t make such a mess of the prosecution witnesses.
A strong prosecutor with a strong case would not have had this outcome.
I think the judge wanted a G verdict and the spotlight off the town, its agencies, and her office. She did a poor job of looking unbiased in this case. The cast of characters involved here made them look like a large incestuos family who were also the town bullies. They leave a yucky taste in your mouth.

I agree with what you're saying here for the most part. Other than snippets of individual witnesses, I haven't watched the entire trial, and am slowly going through it from the beginning. I'm only on Day 6. Lally seemed to have a lot of failings in this trial, as did Yanetti, when compared to the more charismatic Jackson. From what I've seen so far, Lally seemed to be going through the motions most days. Maybe he got worse as the trial went on. If Lally had been so incompetent though, I think there would have been a strong NG verdict rather than a hung jury. I can see the good and not-so-good from both sides. MOO.
ETA: As for the judge, so far, I haven't noticed her acting biased (as of Day 6). I've actually found her to be respectful to both sides. For example, on Day 6, she sends the jury out because she wants to reprimand Yannetti because he was submitting half a page of evidence from an entire page, folded, instead of having it cut off. She explained that the entire page should not be included as evidence, and the jury shouldn't be delayed for such things since they're already sitting weeks for this trial. She asked if they had scissors to cut it. I found that valid in the circumstances IMO.

 

[turaj]

It seems to be a mystery as to where Chloe is. I had heard re-homed in Vermont? If that is the case I don't see why the dog could not be located and I assume there is a way to more accurately determine if the dog bite theory is possible? Or did they put Chloe down and given that would not play well with public perception the Vermont story fabricated? Did anyone make an attempt on locating Chloe?

 

[Misy]

Re the question of how this happened. I believe that Colin Albert was absolutely 100% involved. He had bruising on his knuckles in a pic taken a few days later. And remember his reason on cross was that he slipped on ice and skidded down a driveway on his knuckles. No scraping or cuts, just bruised knuckles. He was said to have been a big guy, good athlete, with an antagonistic personality (remember the selfie video they played in court, aggressively threatening someone?)

People at the house said he wasn’t there when he clearly was. His dad Chris Albert testified as to when Colin came home that night, but on cross it was determined that Chris Albert’s timeline was fiction.

His mom Julie A told Michael proctor she wanted to buy him a gift when this was all over.

What about Allie McCabe? She and Colin were very close… had been their whole lives. She said she picked him up, drove him home, went home herself and never left. But on cross it was revealed that her life 360 app had her driving around for about an hour I think (can’t exactly remember how long) and at one point she had driven to the high school. This was in the early morning hours of Jan 29th. Why? Perhaps as I have seen elsewhere she and Colin got him a change of clothes (maybe he even took a quick shower at home) and they drove to the high school to dump his clothes (with JOK’s dna and possibly blood) in the dumpster.

There had been a fight. JOK’s face was beaten up. No other injuries below his neck. Colin had bruised knuckles after that.

And Chloe saw this fight, she went in to protect her family. Now they say she was re-homed to Vermont. But they’ve been asked to provide the new owners info and they won’t. Poor Chloe, probably an amazing, loyal, loving dog. I believe they (probably Brian) made sure she wasn’t around anymore, if you know what I mean.

Then the new basement door replacement and the tearing up and replacing the basement floor, including concrete.

I think this was just a drunken altercation (maybe even started by Higgins) that escalated, definitely involving Colin. Then panic, then cover-up.

MOO

 

[TIGER0822]

I agree with what you're saying here for the most part. Other than snippets of individual witnesses, I haven't watched the entire trial, and am slowly going through it from the beginning. I'm only on Day 6. Lally seemed to have a lot of failings in this trial, as did Yanetti, when compared to the more charismatic Jackson. From what I've seen so far, Lally seemed to be going through the motions most days. Maybe he got worse as the trial went on. If Lally had been so incompetent though, I think there would have been a strong NG verdict rather than a hung jury. I can see the good and not-so-good from both sides. MOO.
ETA: As for the judge, so far, I haven't noticed her acting biased (as of Day 6). I've actually found her to be respectful to both sides. For example, on Day 6, she sends the jury out because she wants to reprimand Yannetti because he was submitting half a page of evidence from an entire page, folded, instead of having it cut off. She explained that the entire page should not be included as evidence, and the jury shouldn't be delayed for such things since they're already sitting weeks for this trial. She asked if they had scissors to cut it. I found that valid in the circumstances IMO.

Would love to see updated posts as you get further into the trial!

 

[TIGER0822]

Karen probably would have been exhausted from lack of sleep, hung over if she had been drunk, and emotionally drained from all the morning events (driving around, finding JOK's body, police interviews, hospital). By the time she got to the OK residence, she just would have needed to get some sleep, and she wanted to get her belongings. It didn't sound like she knew the rest of John's family very well, so sticking around might have been awkward for everyone. If she had been "guilty", would she have even showed up at all? I doubt it!

Which leads me to wonder, why wasn't she arrested and taken into custody that very morning?

I do wonder if after the OK family have time to reflect on everything uncovered during the trial, if they will be able to see how the behavior of the McCabes, Alberts, Higgins and Proctor contributed to the chaos of understanding John's death. And those animal bites ... how does that get reconciled?

MOO.

‘A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest

I wonder whether they will change the next defence and in what ways?
Prosecution cannot change much except procure better experts but that will not be first hand..

defendant can’t afford a defense .

 

[TIGER0822]

The O’Keefe family are not going to change their minds.

‘A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest” Simon & Garfunkel - ‘The Boxer’.

defendant can’t afford a defense .

 

[turaj]

The O’Keefe family are not going to change their minds.

They can't change at this point...it would mean starting over and looking at people that they trust and have become close to. It might mean not presenting a united front.