Karen Read asks judge to dismiss emotional distress claim in O'Keefe family lawsuit
O'Keefe's family filed a wrongful death suit in August 2024. The suit was filed against Read and two Canton bars.
According to new court documents filed Tuesday, Read's attorneys want the family's claims of "emotional distress" tossed out. They say family members were not present at the time of the alleged crash, which her attorneys argue undermines the family's claims.
She is not seeking to dismiss the suit entirely. The civil suit is being heard in Plymouth Superior Court.
Read was accused of hitting and killing O'Keefe, who she was dating, outside a Canton home after a night of heavy drinking. Her first criminal trial ended in a mistrial in 2024. During the retrial in 2025, a jury acquitted Read of second-degree murder, manslaughter while operating under the influence of alcohol, and leaving the scene of bodily injury and death.
The jury found Read guilty only of operating under the influence of alcohol. She received a year of probation.
When O'Keefe's family filed the civil suit, they said they were seeking monetary damages of $50,000 for "conscious pain and suffering, fear of impending death, wrongful death, lost value to next of kin, severe and profound emotional distress manifesting in bodily symptoms, and other compensable damages."
Read's criminal defense attorney Alan Jackson joined her legal team earlier this month for the civil suit.
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