A photo of Karen Read cuddling with her lawyer could potentially hurt a retrial, according to a former homicide detective. The photo was taken shortly after the jury was deadlocked in Read's murder trial.
The mistrial in the Karen Read murder case has taken a surprising turn, with the emergence of a photo showing Read cozying up to her lawyer. Former Washington, D.C., homicide detective Ted Williams believes that the photo could have a negative impact on a potential retrial.
"Perception is everything, and if that photo is authenticated of the lawyer cuddling with his client, I can certainly tell you that's something that's not a good look," Williams told Fox News.
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
Read's attorney, Alan Jackson, has not responded to requests for comment about the photo.
Jackson and David Yannetti were Read's powerhouse attorneys who successfully argued accusations that Read killed her boyfriend, Boston police officer John O'Keefe, as part of an elaborate cover-up and frame job.
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
They planted enough seeds of doubt in the jury that the jury was deadlocked after nearly 26 hours of deliberation, and the weekslong trial ended with a mistrial.
Read, a 44-year-old financial analyst, walked out of the Dedham, Massachusetts, courthouse a free woman after two years of conspiracies and venomous rhetoric against Read and O'Keefe's family and friends.
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
However, prosecutors have stated their intention to re-try the case.
The case has turned the Boston suburb of Canton into a civil war-like atmosphere, with the death of O'Keefe becoming a footnote in the story that has focused largely on Read.
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
"It's turned into the Karen Read show," O'Keefe's brother, Paul O'Keefe, told CBS Boston. "She walks through a crowd that cheers her on. She goes in public and takes pictures and signs autographs.
"She's just living life like nothing ever happened."
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
The Massachusetts jury deliberated for nearly 26 hours and had been deadlocked for days. The jurors were "deeply divided" because of "deeply held convictions" and a "consensus [that was] unattainable," according to the first of two notes to the presiding judge on Monday.
The judge made the jury go back one more time in a last-resort effort to come to a unanimous verdict. The result was the same, and the trial ended.
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
"Despite our commitment to the duty entrusted in us, we find ourselves deeply divided by fundamental differences in our opinions and state of mind," the jury wrote in its final note to the judge.
The jury sat for weeks during a trial that included 74 witnesses and nearly 700 pieces of evidence.
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
Prosecutors argued a shouting match turned deadly during a booze-infused fight in January 2022, when Read allegedly backed into O'Keefe with her SUV and left him to die during a nor'easter.
His body was found on the front lawn of an influential family with deep ties to law enforcement and prosecutors. Read claimed that the family framed her for O'Keefe's death in an elaborate cover-up.
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
The deadlocked jury was as torn as the otherwise quiet Boston suburb of Canton.
Critics of Karen Read gathered outside the courthouse in Dedham, Massachusetts, while supporters celebrated near Norfolk Superior Court on Monday.
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
Protesters voiced their opinions, #FreeKaren billboards cropped up, and family and friends of both sides of the case were lambasted and heckled.
One of O'Keefe's friends told Fox News Digital that Read supporters shouted profanities and heckled them as they entered the courtroom for the first day of the trial.
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
Aidan "Turtleboy" Kearney, a controversial blogger who was frequently seen with a bullhorn backing Read, was assaulted outside a Canton bar.
Jillian Daniels and James Farris, two Canton residents, were charged with assault, police confirmed to NBC 10 Boston.
Karen Read's Mistrial: Cozy Embrace with Lawyer Raises Concerns About Retrial
