Karen Read’s silence in murder trial raises stakes for defense

Karen Read’s defence team’s determination to not telephone her to the witnesser basal is simply a gamble that could assistance oregon hinder her lawsuit aft the prosecution played her damaging interrogation clips successful her 2nd execution proceedings – allowing the assemblage to perceive Read’s mentation of events successful her ain words. 

Read is facing the anticipation of beingness successful situation for the alleged murder of her boyfriend, Boston constabulary serviceman John O’Keefe. The prosecution claims Read struck O’Keefe with her Lexus SUV successful a drunken argument, leaving him to frost to decease successful the beforehand gait of a friend’s location enactment soon aft midnight connected Jan. 29, 2022. 

Read’s defence squad insists her conveyance ne'er made interaction with O’Keefe and determination was nary collision. 

"When I archetypal came to practice, it was ‘never enactment your lawsuit connected stand, ever,’" New York City defence lawyer Louis Gelormino told Fox News Digital. "But I thin to disagree with that sometimes. I deliberation we person gotten our biggest wins erstwhile we enactment our lawsuit connected the stand." 

KAREN READ'S TRUE-CRIME DOCUMENTARIES MAY IMPACT SECOND TRIAL: COURT DOCS

Karen Read walks with 1 of her attorneys, Alan Jackson, during her proceedings Tuesday, May 27, 2025, successful Dedham, Mass. (Matt Stone/The Boston Herald via AP, Pool)

On Tuesday, the defence submitted the team’s proposed assemblage instructions that bespeak Read volition not instrumentality the basal successful her trial. 

"As you know, Ms. Read did not attest astatine this trial," the instructions read. "You whitethorn not clasp that against her. Ms. Read has an implicit close not to attest because, arsenic I've explained, she is presumed to beryllium guiltless and does not person to bash thing to person you she is innocent." 

The instructions accent that the crushed Read chose to not instrumentality the witnesser basal is not applicable to the jury’s deliberations and cannot beryllium considered grounds in her trial. Legal experts archer Fox News Digital the prime to support a suspect from speaking whitethorn not ever beryllium the champion choice. 

KAREN READ, ACCUSED KILLER OF COP BOYFRIEND, SHOWED NO EMOTION UNTIL JURY DELIBERATIONS: DOCUMENTARY

Karen Read and John O'Keefe airs for an undated photograph. (Karen Read)

Gelormino said helium believes Read would enactment connected a beardown show connected the witnesser stand, but calling her to attest does not travel without risks. 

"I deliberation the crushed they're hiding her is due to the fact that they don't privation to person to person her explicate each these videos that they saw of her not acting successful a bully way," Gelormino said.

KAREN READ JUDGE BLOCKS SANDRA BIRCHMORE MENTIONS; EXPERT SAYS CASES SHOULD BE WAKE-UP CALL FOR POLICE

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

Special authoritative Hank Brennan played galore clips from Read's televised interviews, picking retired clips that could perchance harm the defense.

"I besides wonder, did I say, ‘could I person deed him,’" Read said successful a 2024 interrogation with Investigation Discovery. "Or was it told to maine that I said I deed him. And I knew I ne'er could’ve said that, truthful the closest happening I must’ve said was, ‘did I deed him?’"

In the clip, Read questions if she "really [said] it arsenic galore times arsenic instrumentality enforcement is claiming." 

KAREN READ DEFENSE FLOATS THEORY THAT ‘JEALOUS’ BRIAN HIGGINS FOUGHT JOHN O'KEEFE BEFORE DEATH

WATCH: Karen Read gives firsthand relationship of nighttime earlier John O'Keefe's death

In different clip, she talked astir spiking her ain drinks with other shots due to the fact that they weren't beardown enough.

Gelormino said the defence squad apt does not privation Read to beryllium confronted astir her statements on cross-examination, perchance opening the doorway for days of tense questioning from the state. 

"They don't privation to person her explaining each of these misbehaviors oregon what radical would deliberation would beryllium atrocious behavior," Gelormino said. 

But the prime to support Read disconnected the basal could perchance support her from providing an mentation for her statements successful the interviews portion besides clarifying her broadside of the story. 

LEAD DETECTIVE'S TEXT MESSAGES CAST SHADOW OVER KAREN READ MURDER TRIAL 

Prosecutor Hank Brennan questions a witnesser during the Karen Read execution proceedings astatine Norfolk Superior Court, Tuesday, May 27, 2025, successful Dedham, Mass. (Matt Stone/The Boston Herald via AP, Pool)

"There are 2 sides of each coin," Gelormino told Fox News Digital. "You could enactment her connected and effort to person her explicate it, oregon you tin debar it altogether." 

Gelormino pointed to the world that Read could look antiaircraft portion offering an mentation for her on-camera stories, which could displacement the jury’s cognition of her personality. 

"As a defence attorney, you are going to person to cleanable that up," Gelormino said. "So you are going to beryllium spending a batch of clip defending your quality there." 

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Karen Read arrives astatine tribunal connected time 22 of the Karen Read execution proceedings astatine Norfolk Superior Court successful Dedham, Massachusetts, connected Wednesday, May 28, 2025. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

The videos airs a caller obstacle for the defense, since they were not played successful Read’s archetypal proceedings past year. 

"The archetypal assemblage astir convicted Read of manslaughter portion operating nether the influence," retired Massachusetts Superior Court Judge and Boston College instrumentality prof Jack Lu told Fox News Digital. "That was with nary suspect video statements. Here, we person galore damaging statements, and possibly a fewer much successful rebuttal." 

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Lu said the defence has not attempted to code the video clips oregon supply discourse regarding Read’s mentation of events astatine this constituent successful the trial. 

"So, the aforesaid proceedings positive the damaging video, wherever the assemblage astir convicted, is atrocious for the defense," Lu said. 

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As the defence continues calling witnesses, the notable lack of Read’s ain grounds volition apt lone beryllium afloat felt erstwhile the assemblage reads its verdict, with the prosecution acting arsenic the lone broadside that opted to see her ain words successful the courtroom.  

"Based connected the information that they had a hung assemblage the past time, [the defence has] a decent case," Gelormino told Fox News Digital. "So bash you privation to messiness that up with having her support her actions and quality for the adjacent 2 oregon 3 days connected the stand? That's a pugnacious decision."