CNN, April 2024
After many months of courtroom showdowns, conspiracy theories and accusations of a cover-up, the trial in the killing of Boston Police Officer John O’Keefe starts today. O’Keefe’s body was found in the snow on January 29, 2022, outside the home of a fellow Boston police officer in Canton, Massachusetts. His girlfriend, former finance professor Karen Read, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and leaving the scene of a collision. Residents of Canton and neighboring suburbs have spent months debating two potential scenarios: Was O’Keefe beaten inside the officer’s house and tossed outside to die in the snow? Or did his girlfriend fatally strike him with her black Lexus SUV?
Protesters have accused local authorities of a cover-up to protect the homeowner and have stormed city council meetings to demand answers. Some have formed private Facebook pages and frequented blogs to discuss intricacies of that fateful night, turning what began as a local homicide case into a national sensation. Jury selection starts this week in Norfolk County, south of Boston. The case’s heavy publicity complicates the process of picking an impartial jury, which may come down to selecting jurors who are familiar with O’Keefe’s killing or have read about it but have not formed an opinion, said Daniel Medwed, a criminal law professor at Northeastern University.
